By Bobby Chacko
India’s first indigenously developed mRNA vaccine against the dominant Omicron variant of the COVID-19 coronavirus will cost ₹2,292, Sanjay Singh, CEO, Gennova Biopharmaceuticals, said at a press conference on June 24.
The vaccine will for now only be available as a booster or “precaution dose”, that is, somebody who has already been vaccinated thrice will be ineligible as the relevant expert committees, which recommend vaccines for public administration, have not permitted companies to administer a fourth dose in India unlike, for instance, in the United States and Europe.
AD: Capeesh Restaurant
This charged price, is the retail price of the vaccine and the government currently has no plans to make a bulk purchase, as it did in the case of Covishield and Covaxin in 2021, that enabled these vaccines to be available for free at government health centres. “We expect to make this vaccine available as a booster in private healthcare centres as well as export it to several international markets,” Dr. Singh added.
GEMCOVAC-OM is the only mRNA vaccine currently approved in India — again under ‘emergency use authorisation’ — that has been made specifically to counter the Omicron variant. Existing vaccines available as booster shots range from ₹800 (Innovac, Bharat Biotech’s nasal-drop vaccine), ₹225 for Covaxin, Covovax and Covishield (as of December 2022), and ₹400 for Corbevax. So far, only 28% of India’s population has taken a third or precaution dose, and slackening demand for booster doses means that not all of these vaccines are easily available at health centres, either privately owned or government-run.
The main vaccines deployed by India’s major ‘booster’ drive promoted by the Centre in April 2022, Covaxin and Covishield — has so far administered over 200 crore doses — cost ₹1,200 and ₹600, respectively, at private healthcare centres. In a statement earlier this year, Pfizer indicated that booster doses of its mRNA vaccine would likely cost $110-130, in the absence of government procurement that has so far made the vaccine available for free in the U.S.
AD: Oysterian Sea Food Restaurant And Bar
The mRNA vaccines manufactured by Pfizer and Moderna are ‘bivalent’, meaning they contain synthetic spike proteins that are effective against the older Wuhan strain as well as the newer Omicron strains. “The WHO’s (World Health Organization) latest recommendation is very clear that a monovalent vaccine is the need of the hour and we have been able to produce that,” Dr. Singh said.
Developing the mRNA technology platform was “expensive” and the cost of vaccine was also influenced by prevailing market conditions and whether the Centre decided to purchase a portion of it in bulk, Rajesh Gokhale, Secretary, Department of Biotechnology, said. The department funded GEMCOVAC at key stages of the vaccine development as part of the COVID Suraksha initiative.
The emergence of the Omicron variant of the COVID-19 coronavirus has posed significant challenges to global public health efforts.
In response to this rapidly spreading variant, India has taken a significant stride by developing its first indigenously developed mRNA vaccine. This groundbreaking achievement holds tremendous implications for India’s vaccination strategy and its ability to combat the Omicron variant effectively. However, the cost of the vaccine, priced at ₹2,292, also raises important considerations regarding accessibility and affordability.
Advantages of an Indigenously Developed mRNA Vaccine
India’s development of an indigenously produced mRNA vaccine demonstrates the country’s scientific capabilities and self-reliance in vaccine manufacturing. The mRNA vaccine technology, known for its efficacy and rapid adaptability, offers several advantages for addressing the Omicron variant. The technology’s flexibility allows for the swift modification of the vaccine’s composition to target specific mutations found in the variant. This adaptability ensures that the vaccine can keep pace with the evolving virus, enhancing its effectiveness in providing protection against the Omicron variant.
Enhanced Protection and Reduced Severity
The mRNA vaccines have shown high efficacy in preventing severe disease and hospitalization. By developing an mRNA vaccine specifically tailored to the Omicron variant, India aims to enhance the level of protection against this highly transmissible variant. The vaccine’s ability to elicit a robust immune response can contribute to reducing the severity of infections, thereby alleviating the burden on healthcare systems and reducing mortality rates.
Affordability and Accessibility
While the indigenously developed mRNA vaccine holds promise in tackling the Omicron variant, the cost of ₹2,292 raises concerns about accessibility and affordability, particularly for a country with a significant proportion of its population in lower-income brackets. To ensure widespread access to the vaccine.
Critics of the pricing decision believe it is crucial to implement pricing strategies that consider the diverse socioeconomic backgrounds of the population.
Collaborations with international organizations and the government’s support can play a crucial role in reducing the cost burden for individuals and expanding vaccine coverage to vulnerable communities.
Given that not everybody can afford to purchase the vaccine, there is the added impression that the government of India is more interested in maximising profit by selling the vaccine instead of providing it free to the population.
AD: Heritage And Restaurant Lounge Bar