In May 2013, MSD (www.MSD.com), known as Merck within the United States and Canada, and a group of public and private sector partners announced an agreement to expand contraceptive access and options for millions of women in some of the world’s poorest countries. Under the agreement, MSD reduced the cost of IMPLANON® and IMPLANON NXT®(1) – MSD’s single-rod, long acting, reversible contraceptive implants – by approximately 50 percent for six years through 2018 in the targeted poorest eligible countries for the reproductive health community.(2)

As part of our ongoing commitment to improving access to health and in support of the UN Secretary-General’s Global Strategy for “Women’s, Children’s and Adolescents’ Health”, “the Every Woman, Every Child movement”, MSD is proud to announce the extension of its access pricing for IMPLANON NXT® to these same targeted countries through 2023 -- an additional five years beyond the expiration of the 2013 agreement.

Since 2013, the number of IMPLANON® and IMPLANON NXT® implants provided in targeted countries has doubled, bringing greater choice to millions of women in some of the world’s poorest regions.

“We believe that all women, regardless of where they live, should have the right to voluntarily choose from a broad mix of WHO-prequalified contraception methods,” said Kevin Ali, Senior Vice President, Emerging Markets, MSD. “Today’s announcement supports our efforts and those of our valued partners and customers to expand the availability of IMPLANON NXT® to the 225 million women who lack access to modern contraception. We hope our decision to extend our access pricing will continue to make this possible as many countries begin to shift from donor to nationally-funded family planning programs.”

MSD continues to work with “the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation” and other “FP2020 partners” in the implementation of the IMPLANON® Access Program.

Family Planning Challenges in the Developing World

According to a report by the Guttmacher Institute and UNFPA, an estimated 225 million women – the majority of whom live in developing countries –who want to avoid pregnancy are not using an effective contraceptive method.(3)  To help address this issue, “the London Summit on Family Planning” in July 2012 mobilized global policy, financing, commodity and service delivery commitments to support the rights of women to voluntarily use contraceptives without coercion or discrimination. Leaders called on the global community to develop innovative solutions and public-private partnerships to provide women with expanded contraceptive access and options.

MSD’s Overall Commitment to Enhance Access to Reproductive Health

At MSD, our multifaceted approach supports efforts to improve access to contraceptives for the women in most need, including in countries and regions where maternal mortality is high and contraceptive use is low. Our approach includes:

• Strong legacy of research and development that has resulted in a diverse portfolio of contraceptive products to support women's changing reproductive needs in a variety of environments;
• High-quality manufacturing and supply chain management to ensure reliable and continuous product supply;
• World Health Organization (WHO) prequalification, extensive registration worldwide and inclusion on the WHO Essential Medicines List;
• Investment and partnership at national and community levels to address complex barriers to access;
• Responsible pricing and commercialization;

As a global healthcare company, MSD believes it has an important role and responsibility in improving access to medicines, vaccines and quality healthcare worldwide, thereby helping to reduce the burden of disease around the world. We also believe that expanding access is a business imperative for optimizing and sustaining our business over the long term.  More at www.merckresponsibility.com