Biological E slashes Corbevax prices by 70% to Rs 250 a dose for pvt mkt

End user would now need to pay Rs 400 per jab including the administration charge to get the shot at a private vaccination centre; move aimed at benefiting children

Biological E Limited (BE) has reduced the price of its Covid-19 vaccine Corbevax by 70 percent to Rs 250 per dose inclusive of taxes for the private market. Now, the end user would need to pay Rs 400 per dose including the administration charge to get the shot at a private vaccination center.

The company said that it has lowered the price of the vaccine to make it more affordable and help increase the reach to protect maximum number of children against the virus. "The decision comes within weeks of Biological E Limited receiving Emergency Use Authorisation (EUA) for children between 5 and 12 years of age. The previous private market price for the vaccine was Rs 990 a dose including taxes and vaccine administration charges. Corbevax is also offered in a single-dose vial, making it more convenient for vaccine administration. It eliminates vaccine wastage, which is a major advantage for private hospitals," the company said.

India’s vaccine think-tank the National Technical Advisory Group on Immunisation (NTAGI) has not yet decided on whether young children aged five years and above should be given the Covid-19 vaccine shot.

The Corbevax vaccination slot can be booked through the Co-WIN app or the Co-WIN portal for children aged 12 to 17.

So far, 43.9 million doses of Corbevax have been administered to children across the country and Biological E. Limited has supplied close to 100 Million doses to the Government of India.

Corbevax was developed by Biological E in collaboration with Texas Children's Hospital and Baylor College of Medicine. Prior to receiving EUA for vaccination, the firm conducted Phase-2 and 3 multicentre clinical trials on 624 children aged 5-12 and 12-18.