title: Developing drugs for developing countries.
abstract: Infectious and parasitic diseases create enormous health burdens, but because most of the people suffering from these diseases are poor, little is invested in developing treatments. We propose that developers of treatments for neglected diseases receive a "priority review voucher." The voucher could save an average of one year of U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) review and be sold by the developer to the manufacturer of a blockbuster drug. In a well-functioning market, the voucher would speed access to highly valued treatments. Thus, the voucher could benefit consumers in both developing and developed countries at relatively low cost to the taxpayer.
authors.affiliation: Fuqua School of Business, Duke University, Durham, North Carolina, USA. david.ridley@duke.edu
authors.forename: David B
authors.initials: DB
authors.lastname: Ridley
authors.forename: Henry G
authors.initials: HG
authors.lastname: Grabowski
authors.forename: Jeffrey L
authors.initials: JL
authors.lastname: Moe
mesh_terms: D000890:Anti-Infective Agents / Q000191:economics / Q000600:supply & distribution; D000977:Antiparasitic Agents / Q000191:economics / Q000600:supply & distribution; D003906:Developing Countries; D017277:Drug Approval / Q000191:economics / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence*; D004345:Drug Industry / Q000191:economics*; D006297:Health Services Accessibility / Q000191:economics; D006801:Humans; D007880:Legislation, Drug; D040541:Marketing; D009965:Orphan Drug Production / Q000191:economics*; D010330:Patents as Topic; D016730:Program Development; D012052:Reimbursement, Incentive; D014481:United States; D014486:United States Food and Drug Administration
chemical_list: D000890:Anti-Infective Agents; D000977:Antiparasitic Agents