The Ministry of Health purchased more than 14 thousand vials of Remdesivir for the treatment of patients with COVID-19

On August 31, the State Enterprise “Medical Procurement of Ukraine” signed a contract for the purchase of 14,346 vials of Remdesivir. It is used to treat patients with coronavirus infection.

4 qualified participants took part in the auction. Due to the high competitiveness of the procedure, it was possible to achieve savings of UAH 1.5 million, which is 23.8% of the expected cost of the medicine. Thus, instead of UAH 6.3 million, UAH 4.8 million will be spent on the purchase. The cost of one vial is 333.87 UAH.

The purchase took place under a simplified/pre-threshold procedure, since Remdesivir is included in the list of goods necessary to prevent the spread of COVID-19: for the period of the quarantine established by the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine, the purchase of goods and services necessary for the implementation of measures aimed at preventing the occurrence and spread, localization and elimination of outbreaks, epidemics and pandemics of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) is carried out in accordance with the procedure established by the law of Ukraine “On public procurement” for simplified procurement.

It should be noted that the State Enterprise “Medical Procurement of Ukraine” purchases Remdesivir for the second time. The first purchase took place in September-October 2020. At that time, the state enterprise held negotiations with 9 global manufacturers. Taking into account the increased demand for the medicine and the lack of suppliers of Remdesivir in Ukraine, the price was UAH 19.3 million for 28,200 vials (UAH 687.86/unit). At that time, the state enterprise managed to save UAH 26.7 million with an expected cost of UAH 46 million.

According to the current purchase agreement, the contracted supplier must provide an approximate delivery schedule for the goods within 14 business days from the date of signing such a contract.

Remdesivir (trade name Veklury) was developed by Gilead Sciences, Inc. The medicine is approved by the Ministry of Health of Ukraine for use in the treatment of patients with coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in accordance with the protocol of medical care.