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Comment by ajiang | Hacker News Reader

An incredible idea. Very proud to see new sustainable models for nonprofits going through YC, especially ones that actually save lives.

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Thanks. We do think financial sustainability is one of the most important ways for nonprofits to keep focused on their mission and scale their impact.

What do you think about the idea of a non-profit generic drug manufacturer?

I've always thought Medicare would jump at the idea of slashing its drug costs, but undertaking something like this is a crazy huge project.

If you can overcome the high capital costs, I think it could be very successful. You may want to check out One World Health which is a nonprofit drug development organization that does incredible work as well.

Generic drugs are fairly cheap.

It's more a matter of whether your country's regulator lets them in, and/or if you have enough retail competition to drive down prices close to their actual cost.

The website says "unopened" donations are accepted - what is this limited to? Does that mean if I have 12 malaria pills in an open container (for a 10 day regimen) I can't donate the leftover 2?

A lot of the medication at these institutions are bubble packed, so you could donate the last 2 in those cases. Thankfully this is the vast majority of our volume right now. If it's an open bottle it would depend on the type of donor whether it could be re-sealed. For example, a pharmacy could.

> If it's an open bottle it would depend on the type of donor whether it could be re-sealed.

Be careful as some medications are very moisture-sensitive, light-sensitive or oxygen-sensitive.

For example: http://www.fda.gov/Drugs/DrugSafety/ucm248746.htm

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