NEW YORK (Reuters) - Bristol-Myers Squibb, Gilead Sciences Inc. and Merck & Co. Inc. on Sunday said they are in talks to develop a once-daily, fixed-dose combination of three anti-HIV drugs.


The move follows statements by Secretary of Health and Human Services Tommy Thompson calling on drug companies to develop new combination products in order to provide better treatment options for HIV in developing countries.


Thompson also announced an expedited approval process for the combination drugs.


"We are clearing the way to quickly deliver quality, life-saving HIV/AIDS drugs to people who desperately need them in developing countries," Thompson told a news conference.


The three-drug combination would include Viread and Emtriva, both Gilead drugs. It would also include efavirenz, marketed in the United States, Canada and certain European countries by Bristol-Myers as Sustiva, and elsewhere by Merck as Stocrin.


Big drug makers generally do not make much money from the sale of HIV drugs. However, Gilead has seen large profits from its flagship HIV drug Viread.


Gilead, Merck and Bristol-Myers said they are also considering certain co-packaging options for the individual products.


In a related announcement, GlaxoSmithKline Plc (GSK.L) and Germany's Boehringer Ingelheim said they are in talks to assess co-packaging of anti-retroviral drugs for the treatment of HIV.

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