To expand access to COVID-19 treatment in India
Cipla and Sun Pharma have signed a royalty-free, non-exclusive voluntary licensing agreement with Eli Lilly and Company, USA for the manufacture and commercialization of the drug baricitinib for COVID indication.
Baricitinib was issued a restricted emergency use approval by the Central Drugs Standard Control Organization (CDSCO), Ministry of Health, India for use in combination with remdesivir for the treatment of suspected or laboratory confirmed COVID-19 in hospitalised adults requiring supplemental oxygen, invasive mechanical ventilation, or extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO).
Commenting on the partnership, Umang Vohra, MD and Global CEO, Cipla said, “Enabling access to high-quality treatment and medication is core to our purpose of ‘Caring for life.’ Through the pandemic, Cipla has been at the forefront of COVID care and our partnership with Lilly is a demonstration of our unwavering commitment to care towards patients impacted by COVID-19.”
Kirti Ganorkar, CEO-India business, Sun Pharma, said, “Through this collaboration, we aim to join our forces with Lilly to accelerate access to baricitinib in India at a time when it is most needed. This is another step by Sun Pharma towards making more treatment options available to patients in India for dealing with the pandemic.”
