U.S.-based pharmaceuticals company Johnson & Johnson is being investigated in South Africa for allegedly charging “excessive” prices for a key tuberculosis drug.
is the leading cause of death, killing more than 50,000 people in 2021. South Africa has more than 7 million people living with HIV, more than any other country in the world. The World Health Organization says that nearly one-third of deaths among people who have HIV/AIDS are due to tuberculosis.
The South African government purchases its bedaquiline directly from J&J and Janssen and not through the Stop TB facility and was paying around $280 for a six-month course for a patient, according to Professor Norbert Ndjeka, who leads the national department of health's TB control and management. Ndjeka said that South Africa had recently concluded a new two-year deal with J&J for bedaquiline at a slightly higher price than $280 per course, according to a report on the News24 website.
The Competition Commission said it was confirming the investigation due to heightened media interest, but would not respond to requests for comment or more information about the probe. It comes a week after a health advocacy group released details of South Africa's COVID-19 vaccine purchase contracts with numerous pharmaceutical companies, including J&J and U.S.-based Pfizer. They were obtained after the group, the Health Justice Intiative, won a freedom of information case in court.
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