GSK, Johnson & Johnson and AstraZeneca have topped the latest Access to Medicines Index, which ranks the top 20 largest pharmaceutical companies for their efforts to improve access to medicines around the world.
It is the eighth consecutive time GSK has ranked first on the list, thanks to a strategy for improving access to medication that applies to both R&D and delivery of products on the market.
The 2022 index found that more companies are addressing access to medicine in low- and middle-income countries since the Covid-19 pandemic emerged. For 77 percent of projects nearing the end of their R&D pipeline, companies now have a plan to promote access after the product launches, compared to just 40 percent in the 2021 index.
Source: Access for Medicines Foundation
Three more companies out of the top 20 now have at least one voluntary licence agreement, which enables on-patent products to be made available for generic manufacturing.
The index has been published every two years since 2008 by the Access to Medicine Foundation, a non-profit organization based in the Netherlands funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the Wellcome Trust, Axa Investment Managers as well as Dutch and UK foreign ministries.
Assessing gaps in access
Ashling Mulvaney, Vice President of Sustainability and Access to Healthcare at AstraZeneca, explains why the list is important: “The Access to Medicine Index is the longest-running independent assessment of the pharmaceutical industry’s actions to improve access to medicine in low- and middle-income countries. It ranks the companies, tracks progress, identifies best practice, and demonstrates where action is urgently needed to improve access to medicine for some of the world’s most vulnerable populations.”
Mulvaney adds: “We value the insights and guidance offered by the Access to Medicine Foundation as part of this index. Their insights are aligned with one of our core values of ‘putting patients first’.”
AstraZeneca performed well in all three areas ranked by the index, particularly in its approach to patent transparency, sharing the highest number of intellectual property assets with third-party researchers.
A targeted strategy to improve access to medicines
Out of the 20 companies ranked, AstraZeneca was the leader in terms of product delivery, by implementing targeted access strategies for countries of different incomes.
Mulvaney comments: “Access to healthcare is a key sustainability pillar within our company strategy. Of particular note, we were recognised as the industry leader in the product delivery category. In this category we were commended for our application of tailored access strategies for different countries reflecting their income classifications across all product categories. We were also recognized for our approach to patent transparency and sharing of intellectual property assets, using technology transfers, helping to ensure the continuous supply of medicines in low-and middle-income countries.”
The index also noted AstraZeneca’s piloting of new and scaled-up existing inclusive business models to improve supply chain capacity. Mulvaney adds: “The index recognized AstraZeneca’s local capacity building initiatives and use of inclusive business models, aimed at meeting the access needs of populations at the base of the income pyramid.”
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