Buyers club

Last updated September 19, 2023

A buyers club or buying club is a club organized to pool members' collective buying power, enabling them to make purchases at lower prices than are generally available, or to purchase goods that might be difficult to obtain independently.

Community bulk purchases

In many parts of the United States, Canada, and Europe, families and individuals combine their purchasing power to buy items, typically bulk-type food, in a volume that generates a discounted price from the seller. The seller saves by having only one purchase order to manage and, possibly, less packaging and delivery to deal with. The buyers benefit from a lower per-unit cost and, incidentally, from an increased sense of community and sharing. Bulk-food sellers often provide tools so their customers can set up community buyers' clubs.^[1]

The trend for buyers' clubs, or local coops, accelerated starting in the 1970s. However, these groups are organic in structure, locally governed, and can come into being and go out of existence without much publicity, so there is no precise figure for how many buyers' clubs of this sort exist or have existed.^[2]

AIDS epidemic

In the early days of the HIV/AIDS epidemic, AIDS buyers clubs became important as a means of obtaining medications not yet approved by the FDA that members thought might be useful in treating HIV and opportunistic infections.^[3] The first and largest of these was the People With AIDS Health Group (PWA Health Group), founded in 1986 by Thomas Hannan, Joseph Sonnabend, and Michael Callen.^[3]^[4]^[5]^[6] AIDS buyers clubs distributed such unapproved drugs as ribavirin, dextran sulfate, and DCNB (dinitrochlorobenzene), as well as cheaper pirated versions of zidovudine (AZT), which was the first antiretroviral drug that was FDA-approved for the treatment of HIV and AIDS in 1987. AIDS buyers clubs also distributed information about the disease and drug developments, and became an important source of AIDS treatment education and advocacy.^[3]^[6] An example of an AIDS buyers club was drawn to wider prominence with the 2013 film release Dallas Buyers Club .

Hepatitis C

In response to the high price of modern direct-acting antiviral (DAA) treatments for hepatitis C, the FixHepC buyers club was set up by James Freeman and his father John Freeman ^[7] in Australia in 2015 in order to help individual patients obtain legal access to generic versions of sofosbuvir, daclatasvir, and ledipasvir. At EASL International Liver Congress,^[8] Dr. Freeman presented data^[9] showing how generic versions are as effective as branded products.

Scams

In the United States, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) found that fraudulent or misleading buyers clubs were one of the top three types of consumer fraud in 2011, affecting about 0.6% of the US population every year.^[10]

These memberships are typically sold in the course of selling another product, either with a free trial membership being a condition of making the purchase at the offered price or with a free trial membership being included as a "thank you" gift along with the initial purchase. The customer may not understand what was purchased or may believe that they have not authorized payment for the membership, and yet the credit card used for the initial purchase is billed for the buyer's club membership at the end of the free trial.^[11] According to Iowa Attorney General Tom Miller, "Consumers often tell us they don't recall ever having spoken to the companies, and they don't understand how they can be charged when they have not given the company their credit card number."^[12]

Sometimes, a wide variety of products are promised at a discount, and then once the fee is paid the products are unavailable or not as advertised.^[13] This is particularly true for travel-related buying clubs.^[14]

Related Research Articles

Hepatitis is inflammation of the liver tissue. Some people or animals with hepatitis have no symptoms, whereas others develop yellow discoloration of the skin and whites of the eyes (jaundice), poor appetite, vomiting, tiredness, abdominal pain, and diarrhea. Hepatitis is acute if it resolves within six months, and chronic if it lasts longer than six months. Acute hepatitis can resolve on its own, progress to chronic hepatitis, or (rarely) result in acute liver failure. Chronic hepatitis may progress to scarring of the liver (cirrhosis), liver failure, and liver cancer.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Prescription drug</span> Medication legally requiring a medical prescription before it can be dispensed

A prescription drug is a pharmaceutical drug that is permitted to be dispensed only to those with a medical prescription. In contrast, over-the-counter drugs can be obtained without a prescription. The reason for this difference in substance control is the potential scope of misuse, from drug abuse to practicing medicine without a license and without sufficient education. Different jurisdictions have different definitions of what constitutes a prescription drug.

Lamivudine, commonly called 3TC, is an antiretroviral medication used to prevent and treat HIV/AIDS. It is also used to treat chronic hepatitis B when other options are not possible. It is effective against both HIV-1 and HIV-2. It is typically used in combination with other antiretrovirals such as zidovudine, dolutegravir, and abacavir. Lamivudine may be included as part of post-exposure prevention in those who have been potentially exposed to HIV. Lamivudine is taken by mouth as a liquid or tablet.

Ritonavir, sold under the brand name Norvir, is an antiretroviral medication used along with other medications to treat HIV/AIDS. This combination treatment is known as highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART). Ritonavir is a protease inhibitor and is used with other protease inhibitors. It may also be used in combination with other medications to treat hepatitis C and COVID-19. It is taken by mouth. Tablets of ritonavir are not bioequivalent to capsules, as the tablets may result in higher peak plasma concentrations.

Gilead Sciences, Inc. is an American biopharmaceutical company headquartered in Foster City, California, that focuses on researching and developing antiviral drugs used in the treatment of HIV/AIDS, hepatitis B, hepatitis C, influenza, and COVID-19, including ledipasvir/sofosbuvir and sofosbuvir. Gilead is a member of the NASDAQ Biotechnology Index and the S&P 500.

Tenofovir disoproxil, sold under the trade name Viread among others, is a medication used to treat chronic hepatitis B and to prevent and treat HIV/AIDS. It is generally recommended for use with other antiretrovirals. It may be used for prevention of HIV/AIDS among those at high risk before exposure, and after a needlestick injury or other potential exposure. It is sold both by itself and together in combinations such as emtricitabine/tenofovir, efavirenz/emtricitabine/tenofovir, and elvitegravir/cobicistat/emtricitabine/tenofovir. It does not cure HIV/AIDS or hepatitis B. It is available by mouth as a tablet or powder.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nevirapine</span> Chemical compound

Nevirapine (NVP), sold under the brand name Viramune among others, is a medication used to treat and prevent HIV/AIDS, specifically HIV-1. It is generally recommended for use with other antiretroviral medications. It may be used to prevent mother to child spread during birth but is not recommended following other exposures. It is taken by mouth.

Entecavir (ETV), sold under the brand name Baraclude, is an antiviral medication used in the treatment of hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection. In those with both HIV/AIDS and HBV antiretroviral medication should also be used. Entecavir is taken by mouth as a tablet or solution.

Emtricitabine/tenofovir, sold under the brand name Truvada among others, is a fixed-dose combination antiretroviral medication used to treat and prevent HIV/AIDS. It contains the antiretroviral medications emtricitabine and tenofovir disoproxil. For treatment, it must be used in combination with other antiretroviral medications. For prevention before exposure, in those who are at high risk, it is recommended along with safer sex practices. It does not cure HIV/AIDS. Emtricitabine/tenofovir is taken by mouth.

Lamivudine/zidovudine, sold under the brand name Combivir among others, is a fixed-dose combination antiretroviral medication used to treat HIV/AIDS. It contains two antiretroviral medications, lamivudine and zidovudine. It is used together with other antiretrovirals. It is taken by mouth twice a day.

Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) and Hepatitis C Virus (HCV) co-infection is a multi-faceted, chronic condition that significantly impacts public health. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), 2 to 15% of those infected with HIV are also affected by HCV, increasing their risk of morbidity and mortality due to accelerated liver disease. The burden of co-infection is especially high in certain high-risk groups, such as intravenous drug users and men who have sex with men. These individuals who are HIV-positive are commonly co-infected with HCV due to shared routes of transmission including, but not limited to, exposure to HIV-positive blood, sexual intercourse, and passage of the Hepatitis C virus from mother to infant during childbirth.

Medication costs, also known as drug costs are a common health care cost for many people and health care systems. Prescription costs are the costs to the end consumer. Medication costs are influenced by multiple factors such as patents, stakeholder influence, and marketing expenses. A number of countries including Canada, parts of Europe, and Brazil use external reference pricing as a means to compare drug prices and to determine a base price for a particular medication. Other countries use pharmacoeconomics, which looks at the cost/benefit of a product in terms of quality of life, alternative treatments, and cost reduction or avoidance in other parts of the health care system. Structures like the UK's National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence and to a lesser extent Canada's Common Drug Review evaluate products in this way.

Emtricitabine/rilpivirine/tenofovir is a fixed-dose combination of antiretroviral drugs for the treatment of HIV/AIDS. The drug was co-developed by Gilead Sciences and Johnson & Johnson's Tibotec division and was approved by the Food and Drug Administration in August 2011, and by the European Medicines Agency in November 2011, for patients who have not previously been treated for HIV. It is available as a once-a-day single tablet.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sofosbuvir</span> Chemical compound

Sofosbuvir, sold under the brand name Sovaldi among others, is a medication used to treat hepatitis C. It is taken by mouth.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Simeprevir</span> Chemical compound

Simeprevir, sold under the brand name Olysio among others, is a medication used in combination with other medications for the treatment of hepatitis C. It is specifically used for hepatitis C genotype 1 and 4. Medications it is used with include sofosbuvir or ribavirin and peginterferon-alfa. Cure rates are in 80s to 90s percent. It may be used in those who also have HIV/AIDS. It is taken by mouth once daily for typically 12 weeks.

John Charles Martin was an American billionaire businessman, and the former executive chairman (2016–2018) and CEO (1996–2016) of the American biotechnology company Gilead Sciences. He joined Gilead Sciences in 1990 as vice president for research and development. Gilead is known for developing drugs such as Atripla and commercializing Sovaldi (sofosbuvir) for the treatment of the liver virus hepatitis C. Martin is the recipient of a number of awards, including the Biotechnology Heritage Award (2017).

The Medicines Patent Pool (MPP) is a Unitaid-backed international organisation founded in July 2010, based in Geneva, Switzerland. Its public health driven business model aims to lower the prices of HIV, tuberculosis and hepatitis C medicines and facilitate the development of better-adapted HIV treatments through voluntary licensing and patent pooling. Its goal is to improve access to affordable and appropriate HIV, hepatitis C and tuberculosis medicines in low- and middle-income countries (LMIC). In May 2020, the MPP become an implementing partner of the WHO's Covid-19 Technology Access Pool (C-TAP).

Access to medicines refers to the reasonable ability for people to get needed medicines required to achieve health. Such access is deemed to be part of the right to health as supported by international law since 1946.

Bictegravir/emtricitabine/tenofovir alafenamide, sold under the brand name Biktarvy, is a fixed-dose combination antiretroviral medication for the treatment of HIV/AIDS. One tablet, taken orally once daily, contains 50 mg bictegravir, 200 mg emtricitabine, and 25 mg tenofovir alafenamide. It was approved for use in the United States in February 2018, and for use in the European Union in June 2018.

The Initiative for Medicines, Access, and Knowledge, known as I-MAK, is a U.S.-based global 501(c)(3) organization that advocates in the public interest for affordable access to medicines, and a medicines system that is more inclusive of patients and the public.

References

↑ Manage My Coop, "How to Start Your Own Buying Club"
↑ Anne Meis Knupfer (2013). Food Co-ops in America: Communities, Consumption, and Economic Democracy. Cornell University Press. pp. 134–135. ISBN 978-0801451140 . Retrieved 6 November 2017.
1 2 3 Howard Lune (2007). Urban Action Networks: HIV/AIDS and Community Organizing in New York City . Rowman & Littlefield. pp. 53–54. ISBN 978-0742540842 . Retrieved 26 July 2014.
↑ "PWA Health Group". TheBody.com. Retrieved January 3, 2015.
↑ Sean Strub (January 14, 2014). Body Counts: A Memoir of Politics, Sex, AIDS, and Survival. Simon and Schuster. p. 178. ISBN 9781451661972 . Retrieved January 3, 2015.
1 2 Kolata, Gina (1988-07-10). "IDEAS & TRENDS: A Market for Drugs; AIDS Patients and Their Above-Ground Underground". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331 . Retrieved 2018-12-27.
↑ Richard Woolveridge (November 30, 2015), "Real life Dallas Buyers Club operation helps hepatitis C patients with free drugs", The Sydney Morning Herald
↑ Freeman, James A. D.; Hill, Andrew (1 July 2016). "The use of generic medications for hepatitis C". Liver Int. 36 (7): 929–932. doi:10.1111/liv.13157. PMC 5108470 . PMID 27306303.
↑ "Low-cost generic direct-acting antiviral treatment for Hepatitis C is equivalent to branded formulations - EASL, the International Liver Congress™ 2016". Archived from the original on 2016-07-29. Retrieved 2016-07-20.
↑ Federal Trade Commission, "FTC Survey for 2011 Shows an Estimated 25.6 Million Americans Fell Victim to Fraud"
↑ Federal Trade Commission, Consumer Fraud in the United States, 2011
↑ "Miller: Buying Clubs Ordered to Pay to Settle Deception Charges", November 13, 2001 (press release)
↑ Fraud Squad TV, Buyers Clubs Fraud
↑ National Consumers League, "Time for Vacation – Avoid Travel Scams"