A month’s supply of Combivir (a combination of Epivir and Retrovir) costs GBP319 ($605) in the UK but sells for just GBP10 in Africa. The huge margin for smuggling and reselling that this price difference creates costs GSK and other drug makers hundreds of millions of dollars each year and thus represents a major problem for the industry.
In an attempt to combat the problem, African supplies of GSK’s Combivir and Epivir (lamivudine) anti-retroviral pills are now red in color rather than white and new barcoded packaging has been introduced to improve tracking.
GSK’s rebranding move is said to have already secured approval from regulators in several African countries, and is one of a number of steps the company will be taking to fight illegal drug reselling and counterfeiting rings.
The company has already announced that it also intends to begin using RFID tags on at least one product, with priority candidates including Retrovir, Combivir and Epivir.