Pune: Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has ordered all pharmaceutical shops in the city to sell Remdesivir after taking only 10 percent profit on it. SB Patil, Joint Commissioner of FDA, asked the retailers, “The state Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has asked all pharma shops to sell Remdesivir after taking only 10 percent profit on it. However, it has been found that the FDA directives are not followed by the shops.”

This comes after Maharashtra State BJP President, Chandrakant Patil recently claimed that pharma shops in the city are taking undue advantage of the situation while selling Remdesivir. With an increased number of COVID-19 cases, demand for Remdesivir has also gone up.

Patil also claimed that many pharma shops are selling the vaccine at high cost than that fixed by the state government.

In a message to Maharashtra’s Health minister Rajesh Tope, Patil said the demand for Remdesivir has witnessed rise due to increase in the COVID-19 cases. “The state Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has directed pharma shops to sell Remdesivir after taking only 10 percent profit on it. However, it has been found that the FDA directives are not followed by pharma shops. Patients and their relatives are being demanded a high price for it,” The Indian Express quoted Patil as saying.

A similar issue had was in the news when COVID was at the peak last year, when hospitals were struggling to find Remdesivir. The demand for the Remdesivir injection had increased following the Covid-19 outbreak in March, 2020, leading to severe shortage in its supply. Many people last year also claimed it to purchase the injection at the double price due to shortage in its supply. It was reported last year, that Remdesivir is also sold via black market.

With surge in the COVID-19 cases, government is also planning to bring down the price of Remdesivir to Rs 1,500.

WHAT IS REMDESIVIR

The anti-viral medication Remdesivir is the first drug to get nod by the FDA to help fight SARS-CoV 2, the virus that causes coronavirus. For use in hospitalised patients only, primary data shows those with advanced COVID-19 and lung involvement recovered faster after receiving Remdesivir.