Remdesivir: Break Patent monopoly-Issue Compulsory License
https://cpim.org/pressbriefs/remdesivir-break-patent-monopoly

Price of Remdesivir in the US is $3,000/Rs. 2.25 lakhs, for a 5-day course. 5 Indian companies are in negotiations for manufacturing Remdesivir under Gilead’s license. After manufacturing in India, it will be sold at a price of $400/ Rs. 30,000-35,000 for the same 5-day course

. The cost of manufacturing Remdesivir for a full course - as worked out by experts—is less than $10 or Rs 750 in the US. And about Rs. 100 in India. Gilead, by virtue of its patent monopoly, is holding the world to ransom by asking a price that is hundreds of times its cost.

DCGIbhas accelerated the approval for the use of Remdesivir in India for Covid patients. But with the US buying up the entire stock of Gilead and the high cost due to its patent monopoly, Indian patients will either not get the drug, or if available, find the cost prohibitive.

The central government must immediately invoke Clause 92 of the Patent Act and issue a compulsory licence for the manufacture of the generic version of this drug, vital to save lives and effectively combat the pandemic.