AIDS Healthcare Foundation files complaint against GlaxoSmithKline

The AIDS Healthcare Foundation on Monday filed a complaint in South Africa against drugmaker GlaxoSmithKline, claiming that the company's high drug prices block access to HIV antiretroviral treatments. The complaint was filed with the country's Competition Commission, an independent body that monitors fair market competition. Musa Ntsibande, the attorney representing the foundation in South Africa, said the complaint alleges that Glaxo "abused its dominant market position in contravention" of the country's Competition Act and engages in "excessive pricing of its drugs to the detriment of the consumer." The complaint calls for Glaxo to allow generic licensing and manufacturing concessions for some of its anti-HIV drugs, including AZT, 3TC, Ziagen, Combivir, and Trizivir. The commission has not yet responded to the complaint.