NEW YORK/GENEVA, April 23, 2024—Danaher, the company that owns Cepheid and its GeneXpert tests, today reported $5.8 billion in revenues in the first quarter of 2024. Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) called again on the companies to reduce the price of the tests to $5 each for low- and middle-income countries.
These tests are used to diagnose tuberculosis (TB), HIV, hepatitis, sexually transmitted infections, Ebola, and other diseases. Testing is the first step to getting someone who is sick on the treatment they need and preventing further spread of a disease.
MSF-commissioned research on the cost of production of GeneXpert tests established that Cepheid and Danaher would still earn reasonable profits even at a $5 price point. Danaher has been charging 200 to 400 percent more than what it costs to produce a cartridge, profiteering off low- and middle-income countries.
While Danaher took an important step by reducing the price of the primary TB test by 20 percent in September from $10 to $8, they urgently need to implement price reductions for the test cartridges for all other diseases.
Mihir Mankad, senior global health advocacy and policy advisor for MSF USA, said today:
“Medical testing shouldn’t be a luxury reserved only for those who can afford it. Getting diagnosed with a disease is the first step in ensuring you get the lifesaving treatment you need.
"Today, Danaher reported $5.8 billion in revenues in the first quarter of 2024 with continued gains in market share in its molecular diagnostics business at Cepheid.
“For too long, Danaher has been profiteering off people in low- and middle-income countries and their governments through Cepheid’s GeneXpert test cartridges.
“We’re calling on Danaher to reduce the price of all GeneXpert tests sold in low- and middle-income countries to no more than $5 each.”
