The Hummingbird. Unitaid News – May 2020

Unitaid and COVID-19

Unitaid joins global cooperation COVID-19 efforts as international pledging marathon is launched

The European Union and its partner governments launched the international pledging marathon to raise US$ 8 billion to kick-start global cooperation to develop quality, effective and affordable diagnostics, treatments and vaccines against COVID-19. A key part of this is ensure equitable access by all who need them.

The European Union was joined by political leaders from France, Germany, Japan, Norway, Canada, Italy, Spain, UK and Saudi Arabia; as well as the Republic of Korea, South Africa and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation who are members of the Unitaid Executive Board.

Unitaid salutes the efforts of the European Union, countries, foundations and private sector supporting this initiative. Unitaid is proud to work alongside the COVID-19 Therapeutics Accelerator collaboration in driving the work around development, manufacturing, procurement and deployment of treatments.

Building on its areas of expertise, Unitaid will also play a leading role in the diagnostics partnership as well as contribute to cross-cutting issues such as health systems strengthening – in particular to find innovative solutions that are adapted and accessible to all, especially in low resources settings.

“We need to ensure equitable access to these new tools and make sure all those who need them, can access them” said Marisol Touraine, Chair of the Unitaid Executive Board. “In that regard, we should learn from the positive experience of the Medicines Patent Pool and support the implementation of a global voluntary pooling mechanism for COVID-19 related technologies.”

Dr Philippe Duneton, Unitaid Executive Director a.i., said, “Unitaid will work to make sure that medicines and diagnostics are adapted and accessible to everyone, everywhere. Working with partners, industry and civil society will be key to supporting the goals of effective testing, prevention and treatment.”

The pledging marathon started with a landmark pledges of just under US$ 8 billion in an unprecedented global response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Unitaid is fully committed to join forces with its key international partners and countries, and to actively contribute Unitaid expertise in identifying and bringing forward innovation. The pledging event runs until 23 May 2020.

COVID-19 Global Preparedness Pledging infographic (Click image to enlarge on screen)

 

Media Contact:

Martin HARVEY | +41 79 249 35 29 | harveym@unitaid.who.int

Unitaid responds to global call to action partnership for COVID-19

Geneva — Unitaid has joined with partners in the initial coalition of global health actors as part of the Access to COVID-19 Tools (ACT) Accelerator announced by the World Health Organization on Friday 24 April 2020. These extraordinary times require the global health community to stand in solidarity to find solutions, and in particular solutions that work in places with weak health systems.

Responding quickly to the COVID-19 pandemic, Unitaid and partners are enhancing grant projects in midstream to advance fast molecular testing, clinical trials of medicines, and access to portable devices that can identify critically ill patients by measuring oxygen levels in the blood.

“Unitaid’s pre-COVID-19 work provides us with well-established facilities, longstanding partners and the experience to make a unique contribution to fighting the pandemic, especially in diagnostics, triage tools and gathering evidence on treatments,” Unitaid Executive Director, a.i. Philippe Duneton said. “For Unitaid, it’s all about making the tools accessible, available and affordable in a shorter time than ever.”

“The expanded initiatives will add clear value to the global response to COVID-19, especially in creating prompt access to new COVID-19 commodities in places where health systems are fragile. This is the first wave of the Unitaid response in the ACT Accelerator.”

In diagnostics, Unitaid with Clinton Health Access Initiative, UNICEF and other partners are activating COVID-19 testing sites and laboratories inside an already well-established network of facilities across Africa, while arranging for a supply of reliable, automated tests.

Unitaid partner FIND is complementing that work by evaluating diagnostic tests for COVID-19, with the goal of quickly making available an adequate supply of high-quality tests. This initiative, the first of its kind in Africa, clears a path for other partners and funders to join in.

Specifically, FIND will conduct rapid evaluation of diagnostic tests for COVID-19, prioritized for use in low- and middle-income countries, in collaboration with partners such as the World Health Organization and Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention and the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria; push toward completing a new diagnostic assay that can be used in lower and middle-income countries, and continue monitoring the research and development pipeline for tests.

In treatment, four Unitaid-supported clinical trials that have been evaluating HIV medicines are now also accommodating an observational study of COVID-19 infection in Africa in people living with HIV. The study, using staff and facilities already on the ground, aims to shed light on how COVID-19 acts in low-resource areas with high HIV burdens, an important contribution toward crafting appropriate treatments. Other trials underway have been studying only COVID-19 in high-income countries, so data from the global South would fill an important knowledge gap. The study, called COHIVE, is led by the Kirby Institute at the University of New South Wales, and includes Ezintsha Wits RHI, the Institut Bouisson Bertrand, and the University of Liverpool.

For supportive health tools, Unitaid is expanding two grants, with partners PATH and ALIMA (The Alliance for International Medical Action), to ensure that low- and middle-income countries can meet demands for respiratory therapy. PATH’s work will map suppliers for ventilators, pulse oximeters and other much-needed tools to understand inventory levels, production capacity and other factors related to accessibility. ALIMA’s activities will strengthen capacities in a number of African countries for implementation of triage and infection prevention and control measures, including the supply of oxygen.

To ensure that medicines, vaccines, tests and tools for COVID-19 are available and affordable in all countries without a time lag, Unitaid supports the Medicines Patent Pool. The organization, founded by Unitaid, expanded its mandate in March 2020 in response to the pandemic. The MPP works with pharmaceutical companies to license their rights on a voluntary basis, which has led to the production of generic medicines that treat tens of millions of people in low- and middle-income countries around the world. 

Unitaid is also expanding its work in innovative communication by supporting an exciting new digital mini-series to raise awareness about COVID-19 among Africa’s youth. Debuting in April 2020, ‘MTV Shuga Alone Together’ is produced by the MTV Staying Alive Foundation and is jointly supported with United Nations Every Woman Every Child initiative.

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Media Contact:

Martin HARVEY | +41 79 249 35 29 | harveym@unitaid.who.int

Medicines Patent Pool and Unitaid respond to access efforts for COVID-19 treatments and technologies

The Board of the Medicines Patent Pool (MPP) has decided to temporarily expand its mandate to include any health technology that could contribute to the global response to COVID-19 and where licensing could facilitate innovation and access. With the support of Unitaid, this will allow MPP to offer its intellectual property and licensing expertise to the World Health Organization (WHO) to assist the global effort in any way it can.

Both MPP and Unitaid underline their commitment to jointly ensure equitable and timely access to medicines and diagnostics by the most vulnerable populations, as stressed in the G20 Leaders’ 26 March 2020 Statement.

Marie-Paule Kieny, Chair of the MPP Governance Board, said, “In these difficult times, the MPP Board recognises the important role that MPP can play to increase access to life-saving products for those who need them most. And importantly, with time of the essence, to ensure that we make use of the expertise and mechanisms that already exist.”

Marisol Touraine, Chair of the Unitaid Executive Board and former French Minister of Health and Social Affairs, said, “Unitaid is fully engaged in the global response to COVID-19 and supports the call by the President of Costa Rica for voluntary pooling of intellectual property rights for medicines and diagnostics to promote the global fight against COVID-19. The Medicines Patent Pool, set up and funded by Unitaid a decade ago, has a proven track record and is immediately available to the WHO to begin this urgent work.”

The MPP decision follows the 27 March 2020 announcement by Unitaid to commit an initial US$30 million of investment to innovative treatment, diagnostics and respiratory triage tools as part of the global response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Since the start of the outbreak MPP has regularly updated its patent intelligence database, MedsPaL, with the status of candidate products. The database will continue to be updated as new patented candidates emerge.

For more information:

Martin HARVEY ALLCHURCH | +41 79 249 35 29 | harveym@unitaid.who.int

Gelise MCCULLOUGH | +41 79 685 64 36 | press@medicinespatentpool.org

With special investment, Unitaid bolsters COVID-19 response

Geneva – Unitaid’s Executive Board today approved up to US$ 30 million for work against COVID-19, authorizing Unitaid to contribute its expertise in innovative treatment, diagnostics and respiratory triage tools to a global pandemic response.

“During these extraordinary times, the global health community must stand together to find solutions and place special attention on vulnerable populations, especially those in countries with weaker health systems which are likely to bear the brunt of this pandemic,” Unitaid Executive Board Chair Marisol Touraine said.

The Board earmarked the funds for immediate expansion and reprogramming inside of Unitaid’s current grant projects and left the door open to further investment opportunities that might arise as the world responds to COVID-19.

The Board’s action clears the way for Unitaid to fund a clinical trial to gather data on how COVID-19 affects people living with HIV, and what drugs could be effective for them. The work aligns with WHO’s new SOLIDARITY Trial, a worldwide effort begun this month to generate data on which treatments work best for COVID-19.

“We need the help of all our partners to tackle the COVID-19 pandemic,” WHO Director-General Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said Friday. “I welcome the decision by Unitaid to bring its expertise in innovation and access to this fight.”

Unitaid will also harness the diagnostic laboratories it supports in about 20 countries to expand access to high-quality COVID-19 testing. Product evaluations to make sure tests work properly also fall within the scope of Unitaid’s work.

A portion of the approved funds will go toward expanding access to triage tools, such as devices for measuring oxygen levels in patients’ blood. The tools help identify patients who are dangerously ill.

Executive Director a.i. Philippe Duneton said Unitaid is working closely with many partners, such as WHO, the Global Fund, UNICEF, as well as organizations Unitaid supports in the countries; providing technical assistance, better access to fast polymerase chain reaction (PCR) tests for COVID-19, and generating evidence on new therapeutic approaches and care for pneumonia.

“There is an urgent need for new tools, but also for greater emphasis on making these tools accessible in countries where they are needed,” Dr. Duneton said.

Unitaid has US$ 1.3 billion in projects under way around the world. The organization’s work advances innovations in medicines and technologies that can help the world move toward the United Nations goal of universal health coverage.

For more information:

Carol MASCIOLA |+41 79 764 0223 | masciolac@unitaid.who.int

Unitaid and COVID-19

Geneva – As it becomes clearer that the COVID-19 pandemic will affect millions of people around the globe, it is also increasingly evident that it will disproportionately touch the most vulnerable amongst us. In common with other global health actors, Unitaid is reviewing its activities, in particular in the many countries in which Unitaid is currently supporting interventions.

Unitaid is in discussion with its partners to explore potential actions and innovations within existing investments that could boost the global response to this new virus, which are relevant and actionable within a meaningful timeframe. Unitaid is asking its existing grant implementing partners to look at the possibility of assigning unspent money or of reassigning project savings. It will also assess potential additional investment in light of the current pandemic.

As part of its response, Unitaid is also asking partners to consider the impact of COVID-19 on people receiving treatment or support through its grants, as well as on the personnel involved in delivering these important services.

During these extraordinary times, the global health community must stand together to find solutions to protect vulnerable populations, especially those in countries with weaker health systems, who are likely to bear the brunt of this pandemic.

For more information:

Martin HARVEY ALLCHURCH | +41 79 249 35 29 | harveym@unitaid.who.int

Tuberculosis diagnostics market in select high-burden countries current market and future opportunities for novel diagnostics