reporter: jerry larson is feeling good, spending part of his day volunteering at the food basket to help others with hiv. managing his own condition with drugs at a cost of $3,000 a month. i ve been a fortunate recipient of hiv medication and drugs obviously. that s what i attribute my longevity to. reporter: but jerry, also the co-chair of the santa clara county hiv planning council, says many others are about to be as fortunate. that s because gilead scientists, a maker of drugs to fight aids, just announced plans to make its drugs much cheaper by allowing them to be made by generic manufacturers. this could not only save local patients a great deal of money but also make it far more possible to fight aids in developing countries. the drugs are so limited, the waiting lists are so long, that you just some people are going without lifesaving benefits i m enjoying every day. reporter: and, if less money from social programs is used to biomedicine, more of that mon