'Second-line' HIV/AIDS treatment available from Matrix, a Mylan company, at $475 today and at $425 in 2010, 28% lower than the current lowest-priced alternative

PITTSBURGH, Aug. 6 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- President Bill Clinton, Mylan Chairman and CEO Robert J. Coury and Matrix Laboratories Founder and Vice Chairman N. Prasad today announced an important agreement to enable better, more affordable treatments for patients on "second-line" antiretroviral (ARV) therapy for HIV/AIDS in the developing world. For the first time, a second-line regimen of four ARVs will be available for under $500 annually.

Addressing the need for more affordable second-line ARVs, Mylan Inc. (Nasdaq: MYL) and Matrix, a Mylan company, are making available all four drugs -- Atazanavir (ATV), Ritonavir (RTV), Tenofovir (TDF), and Lamivudine (3TC) -- needed to enable once-daily treatment of patients who have developed resistance to standard first-line ARVs. The four drugs will be available in three pills, with Tenofovir and Lamivudine combined into a single pill. The three pills are being made available today as separate products, with a total price of less than $475. Matrix also will sell the pills together in one package -- a "second-line-in-a-box" -- at $425 annually starting in 2010. These new products and prices will be available to governments that are members of the Clinton Foundation's Procurement Consortium across Africa, Asia, Latin America and the Caribbean. TDF+3TC is FDA approved, and ATV and RTV are pending approval by the World Health Organization (WHO).

Mylan Chairman and CEO Robert J. Coury said: "Ensuring sustainable access to effective treatments in the developing world is a critical element in the global fight against HIV/AIDS. Mylan and Matrix are proud to continue our commitment of creating and introducing innovative and affordable pharmaceutical solutions. This includes our 'second-line-in-a-box,' which will reduce patient pill burden and facilitate patient compliance. Our affordable, heat-stable version of Ritonavir also represents another advance in the development of products that can withstand environmental conditions in parts of the world where treatment is desperately needed."

Coury continued: "We thank President Clinton and CHAI for their hard work and brilliant efforts in this battle and also appreciate their support of our efforts, which are intended to make these essential drugs more affordable and available to the patients who need them."

Matrix Founder and Vice Chairman N. Prasad added: "Enhancing the standards of care in the developing world is a top priority for Mylan and Matrix. Together we have done an extraordinary job developing a world-class ARV franchise in only a few years.