Centre working with Zydus Cadila on pricing of ZyCoV-D vaccine; likely to launch on 2 October

The Central government, along with pharmaceutical company Zydus Cadila is likely to take a call on the pricing of ZyCov-D, the world’s first DNA vaccine to fight COVID-19, with the launch likely on 2 October, according to a report on the Economic Times. The government is aiming to roll out India’s first approved vaccine for kids aged 12 years and above on 2 October, the birthday of Mahatma Gandhi. “The final meeting to decide on the price of the vaccine is likely to happen this week. The company was asked to submit the details regarding the cost. The negotiations are on and a decision will be taken soon,” a source aware of the development was quoted as saying to Economic Times. The source also said that the Zydus vaccine will cost more than Covishield but would be comparable with those already approved. Earlier on Tuesday, a report in The Print had noted a couple of challenges during the pricing discussions between the government and the company Zydus pertaining to the vaccine. The report said that three doses of the vaccines must be administered for full efficiency while a special applicator that costs Rs 30,000 would have to be used for the vaccine. The report notes that the ZyCov-D would be given on the day zero, 28th and 56th days, with each dose consisting of two shots to be administered in each arm. “We are awaiting the NTAGI (National Technical Advisory Group on Immunisation) recommendation on its (ZyCov-D) use but there are two obvious issues. One is that it is a three-dose vaccine. That does not mean we will not use it but we just have to reach a middle point (in price talks with Zydus). The second is that the applicator will also be provided by Zydus. One applicator (gun) can vaccinate 10,000 people but that price will also be factored into the final figure,” a government source had quoted as told by The Print. ZyCoV-D, that received approval for emergency use in August from the Indian regulators, uses a needle-free applicator using the Pharma Jet, which ensures painless vaccine delivery, according to another report The Mint. India registered 18,880 new COVID-19 cases on Tuesday, with the active cases of 2,82,560, being the lowest in 194 days, and with the recovery rate standing at 97.81 percent.