Covid Vaccine: Foreign Made Vaccines Set To Make Entry In India; Check Expected Price Range Of Jabs

Those vaccines cleared by drug regulators in the US, UK, European Union and Japan or those approved by the WHO have been made eligible for use in India without the need to conduct a local bridging trial, as per the health ministry. Check the expected cost of vaccines here.

The government has expedited the process of approving the emergency use of foreign-made vaccines to increase the availability of coronavirus vaccines in the country.

Those vaccines cleared by drug regulators in the US, UK, European Union, and Japan or those approved by the WHO have been made eligible for use in India without the need to conduct a local bridging trial, as per the Union health ministry statement on Tuesday.

The Russian vaccine 'Sputnik V' has been recently approved in the country. In addition, the process of approving the emergency use of other vaccines is underway. The current move is expected to clear the hurdles for the use of Pfizer, Moderna, Novavax, and J&J’s vaccines in India.

How much will these vaccines cost?

Moderna's COVID-19 Vaccine

The US company Moderna has developed its own vaccine on mRNA technology, with an efficacy of 94.1 percent. It is administered in two doses at intervals of 28 days. Moderna vaccines can be kept in the refrigerator at a temperature of 2 to 8 degrees Celsius for 30 days. It can be stored for six months at a low temperature of minus 20 degrees celsius. According to a report, a single dose of vaccine can cost from $15 to $33 (Rs 1125 - Rs. 2475).

Pfizer-BioeNTech's COVID-19 vaccine

Pfizer-BioeNTech's Covid-19 vaccine is similar to the Moderna vaccine. Two doses of this vaccine are given at three-week intervals and its efficacy is up to 94 percent. The biggest problem with the Pfizer vaccine is that it needs to be kept at a temperature of minus 70 degrees Celsius.  Pfizer, which had withdrawn its application for emergency use authorization for its vaccine candidate, seems to take the benefit of this new rule. A single dose of this vaccine can cost from $6.75 to $24  (Rs. 506 - Rs 1,800).

Johnson & Johnson - Single Shot Covid Vaccine

In the case of Johnson & Johnson, only a single dose of vaccine is given. According to the company, it can be kept at a temperature of 2 to 8 degrees celsius for three months and at a temperature of minus 20 degrees celsius for two years. The effect of this vaccine has been found to be 66 percent worldwide and 72 percent in the United States. This single-dose vaccine can cost from $8.5 to $10 (Rs 637 - Rs 750).

Novavax - Covid Vaccine

The Serum Institute of India, the world’s largest vaccine manufacturer, is now going to conduct human testing of the Novavax vaccine. The Novavax vaccine has been found to be 89.3 percent safe in human trials in the UK. After which an application has been made to the local authorities for conducting human testing at the domestic level. It can cost $3 (Rs. 225) in India.