Novartis To Reduce Price of Malaria Drug Coartem by 20% To Improve Treatment Access

Pharmaceutical company Novartis on Wednesday announced that it is reducing the price of its artemisinin-based combination therapy Coartem by one-fifth in an effort to improve treatment access, particularly in Africa, Reuters reports (Reuters, 4/23). The price of the drug will be lowered from $1 to 80 cents starting on Friday, which is World Malaria Day (AP/International Herald Tribune, 4/23). Pediatric doses of Coartem will be lowered to 37 cents, according to AFP/Health24. Children and adolescents make up almost three-quarters of people who take Coartem worldwide, Novartis said (AFP/Health24, 4/23). According to a Novartis statement, the price reduction was possible because of more efficient production methods. Coartem has a treatment success rate of up to 95%, even among multi-drug resistant malaria cases (AP/International Herald Tribune, 4/23).