Novartis Donates Drug for COVID-19 Clinical Trials

Novartis has announced that Sandoz, its generics and biosimilars division, has started to ship a consignment of 30 million doses of hydroxychloroquine (HCQ) tablets to HHS for immediate use in controlled clinical studies. The study will evaluate the medicine’s effectiveness in people who have tested positive for COVID-19.

The shipment is part of the previously announced global Novartis donation of 130 million tablets in total to be distributed across a variety of clinical trials and stakeholders internationally. The donation was announced a few weeks after Sandoz became the first company to commit to keeping prices stable for a basket of essential medicines that may help in the treatment of COVID-19.

“Our company, and the healthcare industry as a whole, play a vital role in offering medicine and support to address the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic,” said Carol Lynch, President of Sandoz Inc. “With this donation to HHS, we are helping to scientifically answer the question of whether HCQ may play a role in treating COVID-19.”

Hydroxychloroquine sulfate is currently approved by the FDA for treatment of uncomplicated malaria, for which it has long been used, as well as for some autoimmune diseases including lupus and rheumatoid arthritis.

Although there have been no clinical trials to date of hydroxychloroquine in patients who tested positive for COVID-19, there is in vitro evidence that the medicine may be effective against the virus that causes COVID-19. In support of HHS’s response to the COVID-19 public health emergency, Sandoz and HHS plan to evaluate hydroxychloroquine in the US to determine whether it could provide a potential treatment option for COVID-19 patients.

(Source: Novartis Website. 30 March, 2020)