Photo Credit: GHSC-PSM project (2020)
Overview
USAID drives a client-centered supply chain to achieve HIV epidemic control and maximize the availability, quality, and affordability of HIV and other global health commodities. To meet that challenge, USAID, through its Global Health Supply Chain program, operates one of the largest public health supply chains in the world. The mission is to ensure the supply of quality essential medicines and other products to people impacted by HIV/AIDS.
Some of the critical commodities required for HIV/AIDS programs around the world include:
- HIV treatment and other essential medicines;
- HIV rapid diagnostic kits;
- Voluntary medical male circumcision (VMMC) kits;
- Male and female condoms and personal lubricants; and,
- Viral Load and EID (Early Infant Diagnosis) reagents, analyzers, and other laboratory diagnostics and equipment.
Additionally, the global health supply chain program promotes sustainable supply in partner countries in collaboration with other U.S. agencies and stakeholders, while also training local staff in supply chain management to strengthen countries’ capacities to manage their own supply chains.
In an effort to quantify the impact of PEPFAR’s commodities investments in supported countries, USAID collaborated with the Global Health Supply Chain Program - Procurement and Supply Management (GHSC-PSM) and their partners (Avenir Health) to produce a conservative estimate. USAID modeled its impact, considering GHSC-PSM’s procurement of specific antiretroviral medication (ARVs) required for treatment, as well as condoms as a prevention measure. This model estimates that USAID and PEPFAR can expect to have averted more than 200,000 deaths and averted over 700,000 infections over the life of the GHSC-PSM project (2016-2020).
Under GHSC_PSM, USAID is co-leading the development and rollout of a new laboratory network optimization tool (OptiDx ) in partnership with FIND and The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.
New Award
In September 2020, USAID launched the Supply Chain Security Award and initiated implementation in three countries. This contract assists with detecting commodity leakage, diversion, and theft in addition to counterfeit products within USAID-supported supply chains. This award creates a path for supply chain security reviews and provides technical assistance to drug regulatory authorities, supporting host governments to improve their own market surveillance efforts that combat theft, diversion, and falsification of public health commodities.
Achievements
USAID has made significant and long-lasting contributions to the U.S. Government’s fight against the HIV/AIDS epidemic through the following:
- Provided more than $5 billion in life-saving commodities to about 60 countries around the globe.
- Provided more than 70 percent of the ARVs funded through the U.S. President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR).
- Supplied more than 360 million HIV/AIDS rapid test kits.
- Delivered more than 16 million VMMC kits.
- Saved over $23 million in 2020 as part of implementing a revised laboratory procurement strategy for molecular diagnostics (HIV viral load and early infant diagnosis) for PEPFAR.
- Successfully led countries to transition to TLD that was dispensed in 34 of 37 PEPFAR-supported countries.
- Led a push for use of multi-month-dispensing of antiretrovirals for adults and children to ease the burden on people living with HIV. As of March 2021, patients receive 90/180-count bottles in 23 of 37 USAID PEPFAR countries. USAID also introduced decentralized drug distribution in nine countries, which brings treatment closer to patients by offering treatment at community-based centers.
The Next Generation of USAID Supply Chain
Building on lessons learned over the last 15 years, through NextGen, USAID is transforming its global health supply chain program to:
- Maximize the availability, quality, and affordability of medicines and other health products and achieve better health outcomes for the clients served;
- Strengthen local capacity;
- Advance country-level sustainability and promote locally-managed procurement and supply chains in the countries where USAID works; and,
- Increase value for the U.S. taxpayer, and reduce the chances of waste, fraud, and diversion even further.