Big Pharma Is Losing Sight Of The World's Poorest Patients

(MENAFN- Swissinfo) Swiss drugmakers Novartis and Roche are among the few pharmaceutical giants still investing in access to medicines in poorer countries. But geopolitical tensions, US trade pressure and a growing focus on wealthy markets threaten to reverse hard-won progress. Select your language

Generated with artificial intelligence. Listening: Big Pharma is losing sight of the world's poorest patients This content was published on November 12, 2026 - 09:00 7 minutes

I report on the Swiss pharmaceutical industry and healthcare topics such as access to medicine, biomedical innovation, and the impact of diseases like cancer. I grew up just outside San Francisco and studied international affairs with a focus on development economics and healthcare policy. Prior to joining SWI swissinfo in 2018, I was a freelance journalist and a researcher on business and human rights.

More from this aut English Departm

Some two billion people globally don't have access to essential medicine, most of whom are in low- and middle-income countries, according to the World Health Organization (WHO).

For more than two decades, the Access to Medicine Foundation based in the Netherlands has urged the 20 largest pharmaceutical companies to make their drugs available to the poorest patients in the world. Most companies rarely launch drugs in low-income countries. If they do, the prices are too high, or health systems aren't equipped to administer the drugs.

The tenth editionExternal link of the Foundation's Access to Medicine Index, published on Tuesday, finds that access has moved from the fringes of corporate operations to become a more integral part of how companies do business.

More More New treatments Swiss non-profit drugmakers team up as funding shrinks

This content was published on Aug 25, 2026 Waning commitments to global health causes and big pharma's financial imperatives are threatening the development of innovative drugs to help patients left on the sidelines of medicine.

Read more: Swiss non-profit drugmakers team up as funding sh

MENAFN12112026000210011054ID1111954521