Apart from holding talks with the domestic generic pharma players to procure 20 million additional Tamiflu tablets which is used to treat swine flu, the government is simultaneously negotiating with the Swiss drugmaker Hoffman-La Roche to source a part of the stockpile at lower than usual prices, according to sources in the health ministry.
Last month Roche, the patent holder of Tamiflu, (not in India) started a new initiative to supply the anti-viral drug to select developing countries at a reduced cost of $2.80 and $8.50 (for a pack of 10 drugs, price variation depending on the dosage with lower dose costing cheaper) in consultation with the WHO. However, India doesn?t figure in the list of developing countries to which Roche has extended the offer. The quoted price excludes local taxes or tariffs of the destination country. Roche?s patented version Tamiflu costs around $17 in developed countries such as the USA. Roche spokesperson had said that the Swiss drug maker had already sub-licensed a drugmaker (the Hyderabad-based Hetero Drugs) in India to manufacture the drug to fight H1N1, which should adequately take care of India?s needs.
The government has no immediate plans to stock the alternative medicine ?Relenza? (manufactured by GlaxoSmithKline Plc) that has proven effective in the treatment of ?Swine flu?, health ministry officials said. The government has till now ruled out allowing retail sale of Tamiflu and is procuring the drug at around Rs 280 for a pack of 10 tablets. So far, the Centre has already exhausted or decentralized over 7.5 million capsules out of its earlier stockpile of 10 million Tamiflu. The government had earlier procured around 9 million drugs from Hetero Drugs, the only domestic company that has a manufacturing agreement with Roche to make the low cost version of the patented version and the balance from Roche. However, the government of the day is under no obligation to procure drugs from the patent holder or its sub licensee as Roche?s patent application related to Tamiflu was rejected by the government earlier this year.
Health ministry officials had indicated last week that the quantum of Tamiflu drugs stocked for the treatment could be raised to 30 million very soon.
The government in a meeting late last week has alerted and asked the domestic companies like Ranbaxy Labs, Cipla, Natco Pharma, Strides Arcolab, Hetero Drugs and Roche India to be ready for an order of 20 million capsules at short notice. Meanwhile on Monday 220 cases of swine flu was reported by the laboratories, however, no new death on account of the flu was reported during the day. The cumulative deaths reported till now is 25. A total of 9,904 persons have been tested so far out of which 1,927 have tested positive for Influenza A H1N1. Of the 1,927 positive cases, 703 have been cured and discharged.