Danaher cuts TB diagnosis test cartridge by 20% for high-burden countries

Danaher Corporation on Tuesday said it will be reducing the price of its Cepheid's Xpert MTB/RIF Ultra diagnostic test cartridges for tuberculosis by 20% in high-TB-burden countries, from $9.98 to $7.97 per test.

Danaher will provide each test cartridge to the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, TB and Malaria (the Global Fund) and to less-developed countries eligible for Cepheid's Global Access Program to support greater access to high-quality TB testing.

The Xpert MTB/RIF assay is a new test that is revolutionizing TB control by contributing to the rapid diagnosis of TB disease and drug resistance. The test simultaneously detects Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex (MTBC) and resistance to rifampin (RIF) in less than 2 hours.

"By reducing the price of Cepheid's Xpert MTB/RIF Ultra test cartridge to $7.97, Danaher will be selling at its cost and will earn no profit," Danaher said in a statement.

"The agreement significantly expands a longtime partnership between Cepheid - a Danaher operating company - and the Global Fund to improve access to testing where it matters most," the statement added.

Both Cepheid and the Global Fund are members of a consortium that also includes the Stop TB Partnership, the Global Drug Facility, and the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), which aims to increase access to essential diagnostic testing solutions in support of the global goal to end TB around the world by 2030.