Manufacturers of Remdesivir and other stakeholders agreed to increase production and supply of the anti-viral drug and reduce its prices amid its shortage due to an unprecedented wave of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Union Minister of State for Chemicals and Fertilizers, Mansukh Mandaviya chaired a meeting with drug manufacturers and other stakeholders to discuss the issue of availability of Remdesivir. "In the meeting, decisions have been taken to increase production/supply and reduce prices of Remdesivir," said a statement.
Manufacturers of Remdesivir have volunteered to reduce the price to less than Rs 3,500 by the end of this week. They have been directed to give priority to fulfil hospital/institutional level supplies, the statement said.
The current total installed capacity of the seven manufacturers of Remdesivir is 38.80 lakh vials per month. Fast-track approval has been given for seven additional sites with production capacity of 10 Lakh vials /month to six manufacturers. Another 30 lakh vials/month production is lined up. This would ramp up the production capacity for manufacturing to around 78 lakh vials/month, the statement said.
As an additional measure, Remdesivir, API and formulation were placed under the Export ban on 11.04.2021 by DGFT (Director General Foreigh Trade) to increase the supply of Remdesivir in the domestic market. Upon government intervention, Remdesivir supplies of approximately 4 lakh vials meant for export is being diverted by manufacturers to fulfil the domestic requirement, said the statement.
Enforcement authorities of states and central governments have been directed by Drugs Controller General of India to take immediate action on the incidence of black-marketing, hoarding and overcharging of Remdesivir.
The National Pharmaceutical Pricing Authority (NPPA) is continuously monitoring the availability of Remdesivir, said the statement.