Developing
countries to receive single-pill HIV drug

Pharmaceutical companies Gilead and Merck announced Friday that they would distribute Atripla--the FDA-approved once-daily HIV pill--to developing countries around the world.

"The FDA's rapid review and approval of Atripla will help to expedite access for adults infected with HIV-1 living in resource-limited parts of the world," said John Martin, Gilead's president and CEO.

The companies didn't specify which nations would receive the drug. Only one in five people in need of HIV treatment in low- and middle-income countries were receiving it by the end of 2005. (The Advocate)