T

he issuance of a permit for state-run pharmaceutical company PT Kimia Farma to distribute generic medicine from India for hepatitis C treatment starting from July 1 offers hope to patients who will now be able to get cheaper medication for the disease.

“The license is a breakthrough from the Drug and Food Monitoring Agency,” said Irwandy Widjaja, an activist with the Cheap Medicine Coalition (KOM).

He said the license would enable hepatitis C patients to get the medicine in various cities across the nation at lower prices.

The availability of the generic medicines for hepatitis C treatment was also good news for Hartanto Emka, 40, who was diagnosed with the disease in 2000. So far, he had received help from the coalition to obtain the generic medicine.

Hartanto decided not to take injections of interferon, which have been the standard treatment for chronic hepatitis C since the 1980s, as he would have had to spend up to Rp 150 million (US$11,400) for three months of doses.

He also learned that patients getting the injections experienced nausea during the first three months and suffered cirrhosis of the liver after six consecutive months of treatment.

“Since learning about the process from a friend in 2002, I refused to take the treatment,” Hartanto, or Tanto as he is affectionately called, said in Bandung, West Java, recently.

Ronald Jonathan, a doctor who has been treating many patients with hepatitis C, said the Rp 150 million bill did not include the cost of laboratory examinations.

“A new hope appeared in 2013 when a new medicine with the same function but with a lower price was found,” said Ronald who worked at the Bungsu general hospital, referring to sofosbuvir, which is sold under the brand name Sovaldi in several countries, but is produced generically by many companies in India. Sovaldi pills are sold for $1,000 apiece in the United States, but the generic Indian versions go for $4 each.

Tanto obtained the generic medicine with the help of friends in the Indonesia Buyers Club. He said he chose to use sofosbuvir because it did not have to be injected but could be taken in pill form.

“Based on the consultation with the doctor I was allowed to have the therapy in 2015,” said Tanto, adding that no cirrhosis has been detected in his liver.

Tanto had to take one pill a day.

The medication had to be taken for between three and six months, depending on the condition of the patient’s liver and the virus type.

He got the medicine from the Indonesia Buyers Club through the KOM which joined together patients, civil society organizations and individuals calling for cheap medicines. “It’s they who got the medicine from abroad,” he said.

He added that after taking the medicine for a month, his laboratory test showed a good development. “If calculated, I spent a total of between Rp 30 millions and Rp 40 million for the three-month treatment, including for the doctor’s expenses,” Tanto said.

The coalition’s spokesperson, Aditya Wardhana, who is also executive director of the Indonesia AIDS Coalition (IAC), said to get the medicine the patients had to consult with a doctor and undergo laboratory tests to decide on the suitable treatment and medicine.

“When all the documents are complete and the funds needed have been transferred, we will contact our network in India to send the medicine directly to the patients in question,” Aditya said.

Irwandy meanwhile said up until now at least 80 patients had received help from the KOM. They came from Garut, Jambi, Malang, Surabaya, Kediri, Riau Islands, Medan, Bali and Jakarta.

He expressed hope that with the issuance of the license for Kimia Farma to distribute the generic medicine made by two Indian companies, Cipla Ltd. and Natco Pharma Ltd., the government could apply the same method to cure patients with pneumonia, hypertension, hearth and lupus.