Hetero, one of India's leading generic pharmaceutical companies and the world's largest producer of anti-retroviral drugs, on September 25 announced the launch of first-ever "patient compliant pack" of Favivir 800/200 for the treatment of mild-to-moderate symptomatic COVID-19 patients in India.

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Favivir 800/200 will be available in a patient-friendly pack containing 16 tablets of Favipiravir 800mg and 2 tablets of Favipiravir 200mg. It is priced at Rs 2,640. The higher strength of Favipiravir 800 mg from Hetero has been approved by the Drug Controller General of India (DCGI). The product will be marketed and distributed by Hetero Healthcare Ltd, the company said in a statement.

The launch of 'Favivir 800/200' is aimed at enhancing patients' adherence to treatment regimen by reducing the number of pills they are required to consume per day, it said. The initial regimen of Favipiravir 200mg requires patients to consume a total of 122 tablets for the 14-day treatment course. However, with the new Favivir 800/200 pack, the pill intake number is reduced to 32 tablets, effectively cutting down the pill burden by nearly 75 percent, leading to better treatment outcomes.

Favivir is the second drug developed by Hetero after Covifor (Remdesivir) used in the treatment of COVID-19. It is an oral antiviral medication that has shown positive clinical outcomes. The product will be made available at all retail medical outlets and hospital pharmacies across the country and will be sold only on prescription.