[Congressional Record Volume 148, Number 115 (Thursday, September 12, 2002)]
[Senate]
[Pages S8558-S8559]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                    MERCK MECTIZAN DONATION PROGRAM

 Mr. CORZINE. Mr. President, I rise today to recognize the 15th 
anniversary of one of the largest and most successful public/private 
partnerships in health care in the developing world, the Merck MECTIZAN 
Donation Program. Today, this program provides hope to millions, and I 
am proud to pay tribute to Merck & Co., a leading New Jersey 
corporation, for its work on this critical issue.
  On October 21, 1987, Merck & Co., Inc. announced plans to donate 
MECTIZAN, ivermectin, a medicine Merck discovered to combat river 
blindness, for as long as it might be needed, wherever needed. 
Onchocerciasis, ``river blindness'', is a leading cause of blindness in 
the developing world. It is a debilitating and disfiguring disease, 
affecting millions in sub-Saharan Africa, parts of Central and South 
America and Yemen in the Middle East. The disease, which has infected 
18 million people and has left an estimated one million people visually 
impaired or blind, is caused by parasitic worms that infiltrate, 
multiply, and spread throughout the human body.

[[Page S8559]]

  In the global fight against infectious diseases, the lack of public 
health infrastructure contributes to widespread and needless suffering 
even when valuable drug treatments are available for use. When Merck 
made the decision to donate MECTIZAN to treat river blindness, the 
company understood that while providing the drug for free was 
necessary, it was not sufficient. They also understood that it was 
critical to create a reliable, effective distribution system that would 
ensure MECTIZAN reached the affected millions for as long as necessary.
  The lack of public health care infrastructure was a tremendous 
challenge even though MECTIZAN is an easy to administer oral medication 
that requires only a single annual dose. To that end, a multisector 
coalition involving Merck, the World Health Organization; the World 
Bank; UNICEF; the Carter Center; Ministries of Health of endemic 
countries; more than thirty non-governmental development organizations, 
and local community health workers was created. The Merck MECTIZAN 
Donation Program is now considered by many to be the most important 
model for public/private partnerships for addressing health care issues 
in the developing world.
  The success and sustainability of the Merck MECTIZAN Donation Program 
over the past 15 years demonstrates the power and possibilities in 
strong and creative public/private partnerships to help address the 
enormous public health challenges facing developing countries today. As 
a result of the MECTIZAN Donation Program, more than 30 million people 
are now receiving treatment for river blindness annually. Since the 
program's inception, Merck has donated more than 700 million MECTIZAN 
tablets. Access to MECTIZAN has spared millions of children and their 
families from the risk of infection and the fear of going blind due to 
river blindness.
  Building on the success of the program's fight against river 
blindness, Merck expanded the program in 1998 to include the donations 
of MECTIZAN for the prevention of lymphatic filariasis, more commonly 
known as elephantiasis, in African countries where river blindness and 
lymphatic filariasis co-exist. It is estimated that 300 million people 
in Africa are at risk of this disease.
  On this, the 15th anniversary of the Merck MECTIZAN Donation Program, 
I offer praise and gratitude to the many partners who have made life 
better for millions of people in the developing world.

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