Cost of cervical cancer vaccine set to be Rs 200-400

Scientific completion suggests that the vaccine’s R&D efforts are finished, and that the next step would be to make the vaccine accessible to the general population. According to Union minister of science and technology Jitendra Singh, Covid has increased public knowledge of preventative healthcare, which has facilitated the creation of vaccinations such as the one against cervical cancer.

“The schemes like Ayushman Bharat have made us think about preventive healthcare and we can now afford it. The Department of Biotechnology has taken a lead in the matter and are in collaborative mode,” he said. “Scientific efforts at times do not get the scale of recognition they deserve. So this event is to celebrate that scientific completion,” he said.

Outside of the occasion, Poonawalla met with reporters and stated, “The cost of the cervical cancer vaccine, which will range between Rs 200 to 400, will be reasonable. However, the exact cost will only be determined following thorough negotiations with the government “. In comparison to existing cervical cancer vaccinations, he said, “the vaccine would be much, much less expensive.”

Poonawalla anticipated that the vaccine might go on sale by the year’s end. He stated that the vaccine will first be made available through the government channel, then starting the next year, certain private partners would also be involved.

Poonawalla added that a plan to produce 200 million doses is in place. The vaccine will initially be administered in India, and only when the demands of the country have been met, will it be exported to other countries. In order to test this vaccination, 2000 people from all over the nation participated, according to Rajesh Gokhale, secretary of the department of biotechnology.

Source: PTI