Jubilant Life Sciences on Monday said its subsidiary, Jubilant Generics, has launched remdesivir injections under the brand name ‘Jubi-R’ in the domestic market. They are priced at Rs 4,700 per vial of 100 mg (lyophilised injection).
The company will make the drug available to over 1,000 hospitals providing Covid-19 treatment in India through its distribution network. The other pharma companies which have launched generic remdesivir are Hetero (Covifor at Rs 5,400 for 100 mg vial), Mylan (Desrem at Rs 4,800) and Cipla (Cipremi priced at Rs 4,000 per vial).
“We have launched the product at affordable prices and strive to make it available in sufficient quantities to meet the high demand for the drug in the Indian market and in other countries,” Shyam S Bhartia, CMD and Hari S Bhartia, co-chairman, Jubilant Pharma, said in a statement.
In order to increase accessibility of ‘Jubi-R’to patients below the poverty line and frontline paramedical staff, Jubilant Bhartia Foundation, a not-for-profit organisation, is launching unique programmes across India, the company said.
In May 2020, Jubilant entered into a non-exclusive licensing agreement with US’ Gilead Sciences that granted it the right to register, manufacture and sell Gilead’s investigational drug remdesivir in 127 countries, including India. Remdesivir is the only antiviral drug that has received emergency use authorisation (EUA) from the USFDA for treatment of suspected or laboratory confirmed Covid-19 in adults and children hospitalised with severe disease.
On July 20, Jubilant received approval from the Drug Controller General of India (DCGI) to manufacture and market the investigational antiviral drug remdesivir for 100 mg/vial (lyophilised injection) for restricted emergency use in India for the treatment of severe Covid-19 patients.
