Following a high-profile pressure campaign, the company that makes a crucial tuberculosis test has agreed to sell its product at cost to an international organization that works with low-income countries to eradicate infectious diseases. But the move was met with mixed reactions by advocates who say prices should drop for still other tests.
Danaher will now sell its GeneXpert test cartridge for $7.97 each to the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria, as well as to some less-developed countries, according to a statement. Cepheid, which is controlled by Danaher, currently sells individual test cartridges for $9.98 each. Lab technicians can analyze the cartridges in a speedy machine that is also sold by the company.
TB is caused by bacteria and most often affects the lungs. Each year, 10 million people fall ill with the disease, which is most prevalent in India, Indonesia, China, and Nigeria. Despite being preventable and curable, 1.5 million people die from TB each year, making it the world’s top infectious killer, according to the World Health Organization.