Pharma major Cipla has received approval from the Drug Controller General of India (DCGI) to launch Favipiravir under the brand name Ciplenza – for the treatment of patients with mild to moderate COVID-19.
As part of its efforts to enable speedy access to cater to the demand, the company will commercially launch Ciplenza in the first week of August priced at Rs 68 per tablet, Cipla said in a statement.
The accelerated regulatory approval by the Indian drug regulator DCGI for manufacturing and marketing of the drug is aimed at meeting the urgent and unmet medical need for COVID-19 treatment options in the country through restricted emergency use, it added.
“To ensure fair and equitable distribution of the drug, supplies will be undertaken predominantly through hospital channels and via open channels, prioritised for regions with a high burden of COVID-19 case,” Cipla said.
The drug has been jointly developed by Cipla and CSIR constituent lab CSIR-Indian Institute of Chemical Technology (CSIR-IICT), it added.
“As part of this partnership, CSIR-IICT has successfully developed a convenient and cost-effective synthetic process for Favipiravir. The entire process and active pharmaceutical ingredient (API) of the drug has been transferred to Cipla to manufacture and market the drug at scale,” the statement said.
Favipiravir is an off patent, oral antiviral drug that has been shown to hasten clinical recovery in COVID -19 patients with mild to moderate symptoms, it added. Shares of Cipla closed at Rs 665.50 per scrip on the BSE, down 0.90 per cent from its previous close.
Earlier, Delhi government-run Lok Nayak Hospital – the national capital’s first COVID-19 only facility – decided to discontinue the drug among its patients.
The decision was taken in a meeting called by the director professor of medicine Dr MK Daga of the hospital on June 29, 2020. The drug was being given in mild to moderate cases. However, doctors decided to discontinue its use because of the side-effects.
