Gilead Sciences, Inc. (GILD) announced on Wednesday that it has entered into royalty-free licensing agreements with six pharmaceutical manufacturers to produce and distribute generic versions of its HIV drug, lenacapavir, contingent upon regulatory approval, in 120 countries with high HIV incidence and limited resources.
The companies involved in these agreements are Dr. Reddy's Laboratories Limited, Emcure, Eva Pharma, Ferozsons Laboratories Limited, Hetero, and Mylan, a subsidiary of Viatris.
Gilead has committed to supplying lenacapavir to these manufacturers at a no-profit price until the demand is fully met.
These agreements also cover the use of lenacapavir for HIV prevention, pending approval, and for treating heavily treatment-experienced adults with multi-drug-resistant HIV.
"Given the transformative potential of lenacapavir for prevention, our focus is on making it available as quickly and broadly as possible where the need is greatest," said Daniel O'Day, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Gilead.
The company plans to begin regulatory filings for lenacapavir for pre-exposure prophylaxis by the end of this year.
