At a time when Covid19 has claimed the lives of 12,948 people in India and 459,474 across the globe, Glenmark Pharmaceuticals Ltd has launched a drug to treat the patients infected by the deadly virus.
Glenmark Pharmaceuticals, a pharmaceutical company headquartered in Mumbai said the drug will be available as a 200 mg tablet at a maximum retail price (MRP) of Rs 3,500 for a strip of 34 tablets.
According to reports, the drug will be available for Rs 103 per tablet as a prescription-based medication with recommended dose being 1,800 mg twice on day one, followed by 800 mg twice daily up to day 14.
The company on Friday received the manufacturing and marketing approval from the Drugs Controller General of India (DCGI).
In a letter to the deputy GM of the department of Corporate Services, BSE Ltd., Glenmark Pharmaceuticals Ltd. said “Glenmark Pharmaceuticals has just received the manufacturing and marketing approval from India’s drug regulator to launch the oral antiviral drug Favipiravir (FabiFlu) for the treatment of mild to moderate COVID-19 patients in India.”
This approval has been granted based on evaluation of data and in consultation with the Subject Expert Committee, as part of accelerated approval process, considering the emergency situation and unmet medical need of the COVID-19 outbreak, the letter said.
Saying that it is “restricted emergency use in India”, the letter further said: “Restricted use entails responsible medication use where every patient must have signed informed consent before treatment initiation”.
Report quoted the company as saying: “Considering a minimum of two strips per patient, Glenmark will be able to provide FabiFlu for about 82,500 patients in the 1st month itself. We will be closely monitoring the evolving situation and basis the situation, we will work to scale and meet the healthcare needs of the country.”
A report quoted Glenmark Pharmaceuticals chairman and MD Glenn Saldanha as saying: “This approval comes at a time when cases in India are spiralling like never before, putting a tremendous pressure on our healthcare system.”