Original from: 360DX

Danaher on Tuesday announced that it will provide Cepheid's tuberculosis test to the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, TB, and Malaria, as well as to less-developed countries eligible for Cepheid's Global Access Program, at cost. 

Danaher will offer Cepheid's Xpert MTB/RIF Ultra diagnostic test cartridges at Cepheid's cost of $7.97 per test, earning no profit, Danaher said in a statement. 

The agreement "should enable significantly expanded access to the communities most in need," Peter Sands, executive director of the Global Fund, said in a statement. "Reducing the price of these sophisticated TB tests by 20 percent will give a significant boost to our collective efforts to scale up testing and save lives."

The news comes after a campaign, coordinated by the MSF Access Campaign and the Treatment Action Group, to convince Danaher to lower the cost of the test to $5.00 to increase access to the assay. Cepheid said that "recent speculation, based on the analysis of partial information, has significantly understated the cost of its TB test cartridges, resulting in considerable overstatement of their profitability." 

The company will validate its actual cost with an internationally accredited third-party assessment yearly and adjust pricing if needed, Danaher said. 

Source: Danaher Agrees to Provide Cepheid Tuberculosis Test to Global Fund at Cost