Access to health is an issue that concerns governments, society, private corporations and individuals everywhere. The majority of the world’s poor live in countries where they lack access to good healthcare, and there are pockets of society in the developed world where access to health is also limited, often linked to poverty. This is an especially hot issue for the pharmaceutical industry, which is increasingly expected to contribute to greater access to health beyond the development and sale of pharmaceutical products.
A wide variety of stakeholders, including patients, non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and governments, expect the industry to play its part in making drugs more affordable to the poorest members of society and to contribute to improving healthcare infrastructure, where appropriate working with governments to share their expertise and knowledge.
Many in the industry are striving to meet these expectations. Firstly, they do so because they are in the business of making products that can improve and even save human lives, which carries with it a particular responsibility. Secondly, they do so because it makes good business sense. If companies fail to act to address the growing public health crisis, which is especially acute in the developing world, it may damage the companies’ societal license to operate - and thus profitable returns in both the short and the long term.
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