Beximco claims to be the first to produce Remdesivir, not Eskayef

Beximco Pharmaceuticals Ltd claims that it is the first company in Bangladesh, not Eksayef, to produce the potential coronavirus drug Remdesivir.

The pharmaceutical company made the claim in a press note issued on Saturday.

Here is the full press note from Beximco.

"Beximco Pharmaceuticals Ltd has taken notice of the news published in the online version of Daily Star and Daily Prothom Alo on May 8, 2020, (subsequently in their print versions the next day)  titled "Eskayef first to produce Remdesivir in the country" and "করোনার চিকিৎসায় দেশে প্রথম রেমডেসিভির উৎপাদন করল এসকেএফ", wherein it is mentioned that the company initiated distributing preparations from Friday. This was also republished by other news outlets.

We believe the story items were factually incorrect.

We would like to clarify that Beximco Pharma not only was the first company in Bangladesh to produce this drug, but also the only company which has submitted final product samples to the drug regulatory authority, Directorate General of Drug Administration (DGDA), for testing and approval. After producing this generic drug and successfully conducting all necessary tests in house we submitted final product samples to DGDA on 7th May 2020, for testing and approval.

This is a mandatory legal requirement which must be complied with before any company can distribute any drug in Bangladesh or globally.

Beximco Pharma refrained from announcing that it has produced the drug because it felt doing so without being validated by the regulatory body would have been irresponsible and unethical and would have misled the public.

We are releasing this press note in greater public interest to clarify the matter and dispel any confusion that may have been caused by the above-mentioned news items."