NHS England Is Getting a Breakthrough HIV Drug — The Rest of the World Needs It Too

The NHS in England announced this week that hundreds of people living with hard-to-treat HIV will soon get access to a powerful new drug called lenacapavir. This drug works in two ways — it can treat HIV in people who have run out of other options, and it can also prevent people from getting HIV in the first place. HIV advocates cheered the news. But they also pointed out a serious problem: many people around the world who need this drug just as badly cannot get it.

Lenacapavir is special because it only needs to be given as an injection twice a year. Most HIV medicines require a person to take a pill every single day, which can be very hard for people facing poverty, discrimination, or living far from a pharmacy. A shot twice a year removes many of those barriers and could stop large numbers of new HIV infections. That is why advocates say this drug has the potential to be truly life-changing on a global scale.

The problem is the price. In wealthy countries, lenacapavir costs between $28,000 and $40,000 per person every year. Some of the world's poorest countries will be able to buy a cheaper version for just $40 per year once generic versions become available. However, countries like Brazil, Mexico, and Peru — which actually ran clinical trials to help prove the drug was safe — are not included in that lower price and cannot afford the full cost.

This feels deeply unfair to many people. Communities in those countries took part in the medical research that helped make lenacapavir possible in the first place. Yet now that the drug is available, those same communities are being left out. HIV advocates say this goes against a basic principle they have fought for over many decades: where you live or how much money you have should never decide whether you get life-saving medicine.

A medical charity called Médecins Sans Frontières, also known as MSF or Doctors Without Borders, has launched a campaign called 'Lenacapavir: Two Shots. $40. Everywhere.' The campaign makes three clear demands. First, bring the price down to $40 or less per person per year in all low- and middle-income countries. Second, produce enough of the drug to meet real global demand. Third, allow organizations that work directly with patients, including MSF, to buy and hand out the drug on their own.

Advocates say the United Kingdom has a real chance to lead on this issue. The UK has a long history of supporting global efforts to fight HIV, and it has the political connections to push for change. Organizations like Unitaid and the Global Fund are already working to get affordable versions of lenacapavir to more countries, and the UK could give them more support. The UK could also use its relationship with Gilead, the company that makes the drug, to push for fair prices everywhere.

However, there is a serious complication. The UK has recently been cutting the money it spends on foreign aid, which means it has less to give to global health organizations. Critics say you cannot claim to want to end AIDS while reducing the funding that helps make that possible. With only four years left until the 2030 global deadline for ending AIDS as a major public health threat, advocates are urging the UK's leaders to back up their words with real action and real money.