Gilead Sciences Inc will give India at least 450,000 vials of its COVID-19 drug remdesivir and donate active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs) to boost production, reported Mint

Gilead said all seven Indian companies licensed to produce remdesivir are scaling up their batch sizes as well as adding new manufacturing facilities and local contract manufacturers.

The companies had an installed capacity of about 3.9 million units per month as of April 11. Gilead said it will donate APIs to safeguard against disruption of generic supply.

Remdesivir is approved in India for restricted emergency use to treat suspected or lab confirmed COVID-19 in adults and children hospitalized with severe disease.

“Our immediate focus is to help address the needs of patients in India who may benefit from remdesivir as quickly as we can by working together with the government, health authorities and our voluntary licensees,” said Johanna Mercier, Chief Commercial Officer.