DEVELOPMENT REPORT - New American Policy on AIDS Drugs

DEVELOPMENT REPORT - New American Policy on AIDS Drugs
By Jill Moss¹

Broadcast: Monday, May 24, 2004

This is Robert Cohen with the VOA Special English Development Report.

The United States has announced a new drug approval process for AIDS medicines for developing countries. Health and Human Services Secretary Tommy Thompson announced it at a World Health Organization meeting in Geneva.

Mister Thompson said the program will speed up the release of low-cost AIDS drugs to nations in Africa and the Caribbean. The program is part of President Bush's fifteen-thousand-million-dollar emergency AIDS plan. The Food and Drug Administration will supervise the program.

 
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Several different drugs are generally used together to suppress H.I.V., the virus the causes AIDS. The new policy urges drug companies to produce treatments that would combine up to three anti-retroviral drugs in a single pill. These are called fixed-dose combinations. Drug companies are also being urged to put existing medicines together in the same package. This kind of combination is called co-packaging.

Several drug companies say they have already started to develop combination products. Such efforts might require competing companies to work together.

The new policy involves AIDS drugs purchased by the United States for developing countries. American officials say the new policy will help them make sure of the quality of the drugs.

Under the plan, companies that make name-brand drugs or their generic³ copies can equally seek F.D.A. approval. They can offer existing research to show that the drugs are safe and effective. Companies must also show that a proposed combination product could be manufactured quickly. In some cases, the Food and Drug Administration could decide within two to six weeks if a request will be approved.

AIDS activists⁴ have long accused the United States of protecting drug makers⁵ from competition from lower-cost versions of their drugs. They point out that there is already a list of AIDS drugs approved by the World Health Organization. This list includes generic copies. But W.H.O. Director General Lee Jong-wook says he welcomes the new approval program. He says AIDS drugs paid for by international agencies and governments must meet quality and safety requirements.

This VOA Special English Development Report was written by Jill Moss. This is Robert Cohen.

1 moss   

n.苔，藓，地衣

参考例句：

• Moss grows on a rock.苔藓生在石头上。
• He was found asleep on a pillow of leaves and moss.有人看见他枕着树叶和苔藓睡着了。

2 graphic   

adj.生动的，形象的，绘画的，文字的，图表的

参考例句：

• The book gave a graphic description of the war.这本书生动地描述了战争的情况。
• Distinguish important text items in lists with graphic icons.用图标来区分重要的文本项。

3 generic   

adj.一般的，普通的，共有的

参考例句：

• I usually buy generic clothes instead of name brands.我通常买普通的衣服，不买名牌。
• The generic woman appears to have an extraordinary faculty for swallowing the individual.一般妇女在婚后似乎有特别突出的抑制个性的能力。

4 activists   

n.（政治活动的）积极分子，活动家( activist的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• His research work was attacked by animal rights activists . 他的研究受到了动物权益维护者的抨击。
• Party activists with lower middle class pedigrees are numerous. 党的激进分子中有很多出身于中产阶级下层。 来自《简明英汉词典》

5 makers   

n.制造者，制造商（maker的复数形式）

参考例句：

• The makers of the product assured us that there had been no sacrifice of quality. 这一产品的制造商向我们保证说他们没有牺牲质量。
• The makers are about to launch out a new product. 制造商们马上要生产一种新产品。 来自《简明英汉词典》