India is considering lifting the ban on export of hydroxychloroquine (HCQ).
HCQ, which is currently used to treat lupus and rheumatoid arthritis, is being touted as a possible treatment for COVID-19, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus.
Exports of the drug and its formulations were banned “without any exceptions” by India’s Directorate General of Foreign Trade in early April.
However, the drug gained spotlight after United States President Donald Trump claimed it was effective on COVID-19 patients. This triggered a massive demand leading to India withdrawing the export ban.
Since April, India has been exporting HCQ to a number of countries on a cases-to-case basis, including the US, Australia and Singapore. Many other countries have also raised a request.
As per a report by The Economic Times, the Centre is now considering lifting the ban altogether as companies in India seem to have enough stock available in the country.
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The report suggests that production of HCQ has increased over the months. India now produces 10 crore tablets per month, while the requirement so far is two crore tablets.
Moneycontrol could not independently verify the report.
On June 3, the World Health Organisation (WHO) said that it is resuming HCQ trials days after temporarily suspending it citing safety concerns.
On its part, India has said that HCQ doses reduced COVID-19 risk among healthcare workers.
A case-control study conducted by the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) has revealed that the administration of the drug to healthcare workers, who have maximum exposure to the SARS-Cov-2, virus that causes COVID-19, showed promising results.
Also read: Explained | What makes hydroxychloroquine popular? Is it really effective against coronavirus?
The ICMR study suggested that taking HCQ in four or more “maintenance doses” resulted in a considerable decline in the chances of healthcare workers getting infected by the deadly pathogen.
The study, however, explains that “simply initiating HCQ prophylaxis” did not lessen the chances of contracting COVID-19 among healthcare workers; the results started showing only after the intake of four or more maintenance doses.
Source:- moneycontrol.com