It has emerged that foreign companies are jostling to supply Kenya with a Coronavirus drug for most affected patients.
The Pharmacy and Poisons Board (PPB) has disclosed that four companies, namely: Beximco Pharmaceuticals (Bangladesh) and Cipla Ltd (India), have applied to supply the country with Remdesivir, an antiviral drug.
On the other hand, Gilead Life Sciences, the manufacturer of Veklury, has also applied to supply the drug through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. It is one of the five companies licensed to manufacture the drug for developing countries.
The application comes as Kenya is witnessing a surge in the number of coronavirus cases and hospitalizations.
Furthermore, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) granted full approval to the antiviral drug to treat Covid-19 patients.
An earlier study by the World Health Organization (WHO) discovered that Remdesivir, along with three other drugs, had little or no effect despite the drug being used to treat President Donald Trump.
In their applications, the companies noted that they had proven efficacy and safety, but the board is still awaiting submission of data as evidence.
“The advantage is that the drug is based on a vaccine platform that has been used previously which assures better safety,” said an official from the board.
Back in July was among 126 low-income and lower-middle-income countries identified by the big pharmaceutical to receive the drug.
The board explained that all the applications were still under review, and further compassionate use authorization has been issued from time-to-time for needy patients.
Once the applications are successful, it would allow import and distribution.
As of Thursday, Kenya had recorded a total of 66723 positive coronavirus cases. The number of recoveries stands at 44040, with 1203 people have lost their lives.
