GSK tops Access to Medicine Index (ATMI) for eighth consecutive time

Company also announces £100 million investment over next ten years to support health system strengthening and access initiatives in lower income countries

GSK ranks 1st in the 2022 Access to Medicine Index (ATMI) report published today. The Index is an independent, investor-backed report that ranks 20 of the world’s largest pharmaceutical companies on progress to improve access in 108 lower income countries and focuses on 83 high burden priority diseases.

Emma Walmsley, Chief Executive Officer, GSK, said: “We are delighted to have ranked first in the Access to Medicine Index (ATMI) for the eighth consecutive time. This is recognition of the action we are taking to get ahead of disease together and improve access to medicine and vaccines in lower income countries, and I want to thank all of our partners for their support. We have the largest R&D pipeline in the industry addressing global health priority diseases and have committed to invest £1 billion over the next decade in global health R&D. Alongside this, we have today committed an additional £100 million over the next decade to help build stronger health systems and access in lower income countries."

The report highlights GSK and ViiV Healthcare access initiatives that are enabling transformative medicines and vaccines to reach patients in lower-income countries including:

- ViiV Healthcare and the Medicines Patent Pool (MPP) signed the fastest ever voluntary license to be agreed outside of a pandemic setting, relating to cabotegravir long-acting (LA) for HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) to help enable access in lower income countries and sub-Saharan Africa

- A new, dedicated Global Health Group, a non-commercial group aimed at enhancing pipeline progression of, and access to, needed medicines and vaccines in low and lower-middle income countries.

- Agreement with Gavi and UNICEF to supply the RTS,S/AS01 malaria vaccine Mosquirix, the first and only malaria vaccine to be prequalified by WHO, for routine child immunisation in endemic countries.

In June this year, GSK announced £1 billion of R&D investment over ten years to accelerate research and development dedicated to infectious diseases that disproportionately impact lower-income countries. Today, the company has built on that commitment by announcing an additional £100 million investment over the next ten years to support health system strengthening and access initiatives in lower income countries. The new investment supports our ambition to reduce health inequalities for underserved people in lower-income countries through partnerships to strengthen health systems and ensure our innovation reaches patients who need it most.

About the Access to Medicine Index

The Access to Medicine Index (ATMI) is a ranking of 20 of the world’s largest pharmaceutical companies, based on the steps they take to improve access to medicine. The independently developed, investor-backed Index is based on progress companies are making in improving access to medicine in 108 low- and middle-income countries and in relation to 83 diseases, conditions and pathogens.

The Index is a tool for driving change in the pharmaceutical industry. It identifies best practice, tracks progress and shows where critical action is needed to improve access to medicine for the poor in support of the UN's Sustainable Development Goal 3: to ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all. The Index is published every 2-years by the Access to Medicine Foundation.

GSK is a global biopharma company with a purpose to unite science, technology, and talent to get ahead of disease together. Find out more at gsk.com/company