MDGHA, CHAI and Mylan partner to fight childhood deaths caused by diarrhea

Mylan Laboratories Limited, the Indian subsidiary of Mylan Inc. (Nasdaq: MYL), today announced that it has entered into a partnership with the United Nation's Millennium Development Goals Health Alliance (MDGHA) and the Clinton Health Access Initiative (CHAI) to fight childhood deaths caused by diarrhea. According to a recent United Nations study, India has the highest number of childhood fatalities per year caused by diarrhea. These unnecessary deaths primarily are attributed to the lack of access to treatments like oral rehydration solution (ORS) and zinc. A recent World Health Organization report estimates that diarrhea is the second leading cause of death globally among children under five.

At a conference conducted in Mumbai on Saturday to discuss how public-private partnerships can be mobilized to advance the health of women and children in India, Mylan announced that it would develop and expand access to ORS and zinc for needy children across the country.

Anirudh Deshpande, Senior Vice President for Business Development of Mylan Laboratories in India, said: "This is a tragic, heartbreaking and avoidable situation that largely can be addressed if these children simply get the treatments they need. At Mylan, we are committed to increasing access to these affordable treatments to the children of India and those in the rest of the world. We share the concerns of organizations such as MDGHA and CHAI about expanding access to these life-saving medicines, and we look forward to continuing to work with them to help meet these needs."

Mylan has played a pioneering role over the past decade in providing innovative therapies that can enhance treatment compliance for HIV/AIDS patients in the developing world. Initiatives such as the development of ORS and zinc for pediatric diarrhea further demonstrate the company's commitment to providing the world's 7 billion people access to high quality medicine. Mylan's wide range of ARV products includes 13 active pharmaceutical ingredients (API) and 42 first- and second-line finished doses, nine of which are pediatric products. The company's emphasis on producing affordable ARV products has helped to drive down the average annual cost per patient of effective therapies.