US Firm Gilead To Help Speed Up Remdesivir Availability In India; To Donate 4.5 Lakh Vials To Modi Govt

Gilead also said that it will be donating a minimum of 4.5 lakh vials of 'Veklury' (parent brand of Remdesivir) to the Indian government as Covid-19 cases in the country surge.

(Representative Image/PTI)

New Delhi: Even as India continues to reel under ferocious second wave of Coronavirus, US-based biopharmaceutical company Gilead Sciences on Tuesday announced that it is taking several steps to expand the availability of antiviral drug Remdesivir across the country. 

While making the announcement, Gilead also said that it will be donating a minimum of 4.5 lakh vials of 'Veklury' (parent brand of Remdesivir) to the Indian government as Covid-19 cases in the country surge.

To expand the availability of the antiviral drug, the company is providing its voluntary licensing partners with technical assistance, support for the addition of new local manufacturing facilities and the donation of active pharmaceutical ingredient (API) to rapidly scale up production of Remdesivir.

Currently, Remdesivir is approved in India for restricted emergency use for the treatment of suspected or laboratory confirmed Covid-19 in adults and children hospitalised with severe disease.

"In response to the rapid increase in COVID-19 cases in India, the company is providing its voluntary licensing partners with technical assistance, support for the addition of new local manufacturing facilities and the donation of active pharmaceutical ingredient (API) to rapidly scale up production of remdesivir", Gilead Sciences Inc said in a statement.

Gilead Sciences, Chief Commercial Officer, Johanna Mercier, said the recent surge of COVID-19 cases in India is having a devastating impact on communities and has created unprecedented pressure on health systems.

"We are committed to doing our part to help tackle this crisis. Our immediate focus is to help address the needs of patients in India who may benefit from Remdesivir as quickly as we can by working together with the government, health authorities and our voluntary licensees," she added.

The company also informed that all seven Gilead's licensees based in India have significantly accelerated production of remdesivir by scaling up their batch sizes, adding new manufacturing facilities and/or onboarding local contract manufacturers across the country. 

The seven licensees based in India are -- Cipla, Dr Reddy's Laboratories, Hetero Labs, Jubilant Lifesciences, Mylan, Syngene and Zydus Cadila Healthcare.

Shrinking to a marginal low, India on Tuesday reported 3,23,144 fresh cases of Coronavirus infection in last 24 hours, taking country's total caseload to 1,76,36,307. Meanwhile the national recovery rate has further dropped to 82.54 per cent.