New York Times: To Drive Down Insulin Prices, WHO Will Certify Generic Versions
“With insulin prices skyrocketing and substantial shortages developing in poorer countries, the World Health Organization said on Wednesday that it would begin testing and approving generic versions of the drug. … The approval process, which the WHO calls ‘prequalification,’ will permit United Nations agencies and medical charities like Doctors Without Borders to buy approved generic versions of insulin. The process also will reassure countries without strong regulatory agencies that the approved drugs are safe for their health ministries to purchase. The WHO aims to duplicate its success in widening global access to HIV drugs…” (McNeil, 11/13).

Additional coverage of the WHO’s plan is available from U.N. News, VOA and Xinhua.