Indian police seize black market remdesivir, arrest 14

Police in Mumbai and Hyderabad have arrested 14 people on suspicion of distributing black market remdesivir at five times its retail price.

A spike in local cases boosted demand for the antiviral, allowing the suspected counterfeiters to sell the drug at $400 a dose, police believe.

Remdesivir was the first drug approved anywhere in the world for treating COVID-19, after clinical trials revealed it may hasten recovery time.

Gilead Sciences, which owns the patents for remdesivir, has licensed the drug to generic manufacturers in India and other low and middle-income countries.

The vials seized from the suspects were originally manufactured by Cipla and Hetero Labs,  Reuters reported.

It is believed the suspects then resold the drugs illegally at a mark-up.

As hopes for the drug’s efficacy in fighting the virus increased, Gilead came under pressure to relax or even waive all restrictions on accessing the drug.

The company was also criticised for trying to take advantage of a US Food and Drug Administration scheme designed to incentivise the development of drugs for rare diseases.

Gilead has since dropped orphan drug status for remdesivir, and licensed the drug to generics makers for manufacture and distribution in 127 countries.

The COVID-19 pandemic has  heightened concerns over counterfeiting and price-gouging.

Authorities including Europol, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, and US Customs and Border Protection have all warned of the increased spread of fake goods, including testing kits, face masks, and drugs.

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