Over the past two decades, one of the latter organization’s major success stories has been the MSF Access Campaign. A core focus is on eliminating barriers that prevent people in need, often in developing regions, from accessing affordable drugs, vaccines, and diagnostics to meet fundamental health challenges.
Two major obstacles are that lifesaving essential medicines are either extremely expensive, or their development is viewed as not financially viable. The latter results in very limited funds being allocated toward research and development (R&D) targeting priority tropical diseases.
Over the years, the Access Campaign has been successful in enabling effective malaria testing and treatment, and in drastically reducing pneumonia vaccine prices. In addition, it has worked to transform the R&D model to one more committed to neglected priorities such as human African trypanosomiasis, or sleeping sickness. A current Access Campaign is working to ensure equitable access to emerging COVID-19 vaccines, as they become available.