A landmark agreement will make a groundbreaking HIV prevention drug available at a fraction of its current cost in more than 100 low- and middle-income countries, potentially accelerating the fight to end the global HIV/Aids epidemic.
The drug, Lenacapavir, is administered twice a year by injection and provides six months of protection against HIV. It currently costs about $28,000 (£20,000) per person annually, but under the new deal announced on Wednesday, a generic version will be offered for just $40 per year from 2027 — around 0.1% of the original price.
The agreement was reached by the Clinton Health Access Initiative, in collaboration with the Gates Foundation, South Africa’s Wits Reproductive Health and HIV Institute (Wits RHI), and other partners.
“For many low- and middle-income countries, affordable access to HIV prevention is not a luxury, it is a necessity,” said Professor Saiqa Mullick of Wits RHI. She described the drug as having “the potential to transform prevention, especially for young people and underserved communities who struggle with frequent clinic visits.”
Lenacapavir received World Health Organization (WHO) endorsement in July following successful trial results. It has already been approved by the US Food and Drug Administration and the European Commission.
Public health experts say long-acting injectables like Lenacapavir could be especially effective among vulnerable groups — including adolescent girls, young women, sex workers, LGBT people, and people who use drugs — where adherence to daily pills such as oral PrEP remains a challenge.
Despite progress, HIV continues to claim hundreds of thousands of lives each year. UNAIDS estimates that 40 million people live with the virus globally, with 1.3 million new infections and over 600,000 deaths recorded in 2024.
South Africa, home to the world’s largest HIV-positive population of nearly eight million, is expected to be among the first countries to roll out the low-cost version. The country’s Department of Health said it “supports any efforts to make life-saving treatment like Lenacapavir available and accessible at affordable rates.”
If widely adopted, researchers believe even modest uptake could have a dramatic impact. One study suggests that providing the injection to just 4% of the population could reduce new HIV infections by as much as 20%.
