Washington - The United States will loan $1 billion a year to sub-Saharan African countries to help them buy US-made drugs and support their battle against the AIDS epidemic, the US Export-Import Bank said yesterday.
The plan builds on an announcement by major drug companies in May to provide drugs to combat HIV, the virus that causes AIDS, at major discounts to countries that cannot afford commercial prices.
The price of various so-called combination therapies of drugs, which can substantially prolong the lives of HIV patients, range between $10,000 and $15,000 each year per patient. Drug companies are expected to slash those prices to between $1,000 and $2,000 per patient to needy nations.
