STAT+: Licensing deals on generic versions of Roche flu drug aimed at preparing for pandemic

With an eye toward pandemic preparedness, the U.N.-backed Medicines Patent Pool has brokered sub-licensing deals with 11 manufacturers to develop and manufacture generic versions of Roche’s influenza treatment Xofluza. Under the agreements, the companies can develop, manufacture, and supply the drug in 129 countries, covering nearly all low- and middle-income nations.

The manufacturers will also receive access to technical data, reference products for bioequivalence studies, and other support intended to help them obtain regulatory approval in those countries. The arrangement marks the latest effort to widen access to a needed medication for lower-income countries, a goal that has often required the pharmaceutical industry to balance financial priorities with ensuring medicines can be affordably obtained by the largest possible number of patients.