The announcement comes a day after Sanofi Healthcare India announced a separate partnership with Cipla to boost access to Sanofi’s central nervous system medications across India.
The partnership aims to expand the availability of Paris-headquartered Sanofi’s paediatric and adult vaccine brands, said DRL.
Under the terms of the agreement, DRL will have exclusive rights to promote and distribute Sanofi’s vaccine brands, including Hexaxim, Pentaxim, Tetraxim, Menactra, FluQuadri, Adacel and Avaxim 80U. These brands saw combined sales of Rs 426 crore, as per IQVIA MAT (moving annual turnover) February data.
Sanofi will continue to retain ownership, manufacture and import these brands into the country.
While Hexaxim and Pentaxim are indicated for primary and booster vaccination of infants and toddlers against diseases such as diphtheria, tetanus, pertussis, hepatitis B, poliomyelitis and bacterial diseases caused by Haemophilus influenzae, Tetraxim is used for the prevention of diphtheria, tetanus, pertussis and poliomyelitis.Similarly, Menactra aims to prevent invasive meningococcal disease. FluQuadri is an inactivated quadrivalent influenza vaccine, Adacel is an active booster immunisation for tetanus, diphtheria and pertussis. Avaxim 80U is recommended for the prevention of hepatitis A virus infection in children aged 12 months to 15 years.The partnership gives DRL a strong portfolio and major presence in the vaccine segment, taking it to the second position among vaccine players in India, the company said in a statement.
“Through each product and partnership, our aim is to serve over 1.5 billion patients by 2030,” it said.
Preeti Futnani, general manager, India for vaccines at Sanofi, said, “Vaccine confidence has reached its highest in India in the last few years. Yet, there is much to be done for the country’s large unvaccinated cohort. To expand our geographic reach, we’re pleased to partner with Dr Reddy’s for exclusive distribution and promotion.”
MV Ramana, CEO, branded markets at Dr Reddy’s Laboratories, said, “We are happy to have the opportunity to leverage our strengths in promotion and distribution to considerably expand engagement with healthcare professionals and help widen access to Sanofi’s well-established and trusted vaccine brands in India.”
