Celltrion criticizes COVID-19 drugs as 'too expensive'

Celltrion Chairman Seo Jung-jin speaks during an online press conference on YouTube, Monday. Captured from YouTube

By Nam Hyun-woo

Celltrion Group Chairman Seo Jung-jin has stressed the importance of the pricing of COVID-19 treatments that global drug makers ― including his company ― are developing, pledging that Celltrion will supply its antibody treatment cheaper than rivals companies will price their products.

Seo criticized the prices of developed or in-development COVID-19 treatments as “too expensive,” and said it would be “unrealistic” to provide treatment to more than 7 billion people across the world. Seo's controversial remarks are interpreted as being related to the pricing controversy of Gilead Science's remdesivir, which has been criticized for its $390 per vial price.

“One of the most critical factors in COVID-19 treatment development is the price,” Seo said during an online press conference on YouTube. “To end the pandemic, each of more than 7 billion people across the world has to be supplied with coronavirus treatments and vaccines.”

“That is, however, an unrealistic idea because the prices of drugs are too expensive. Only OECD member countries will be able to supply enough treatments and vaccines to their people.”

He also pointed out that no pharmaceutical firms or biotechs could say how long it would take to “free the world from the pandemic” and “how they can supply enough treatments,” adding that COVID-19 treatment developers have a role in serving the public.

Debates are ongoing whether or not the price of remdesivir, which is currently the go-to COVID-19 drug, is acceptable. Based on treatment patterns, most patients are expected to receive a five-day treatment course using six vials of remdesivir, which adds up to $2,340 per patient in the U.S.

Seo said Celltrion had a similar concern. For its antibody treatment, Celltrion plans to spend 300 billion won ($250 million) for development. He said the company would be unable to cut development costs further and that it therefore had to reduce costs by lowering manufacturing costs and profits.

“This is why I said the COVID-19 treatments should be a public benefit,” Seo said. “By reducing manufacturing costs, we plan to provide treatments at a cost lower than any other companies. We don't seek profit from the pandemic.”

GC Pharma, a local pharmaceutical firm that is developing a COVID-19 plasma treatment, plans to offer its product for free. The company said it decided to do so in the interest of public health, but industry officials said the decision was possible because there was a limit to the number of patients who could be treated with plasma due to difficulties in mass production.

Celltrion's COVID-19 treatment earned approval for its Phase 1 study last week, and the company will apply the drug to 32 healthy subjects this week. It will wrap up the phase 1 study in the third quarter of this year and plans to commercialize the treatment in the first half of next year.

Seo said the Phase 2 study would have 200 to 300 subjects and Phase 3 would target 2,000 to 3,000 subjects in Korea, the U.S. and Europe.

For these, Celltrion will manufacture 10 batches of its COVID-19 treatment candidate drugs for commercial validation in September, when the Phase 2 study is expected to finish. If it wins emergency use authorization (EUA), those drugs can be used for general patients.

“Our facility in Incheon is able to manufacture drugs for six million people a year,” Seo said. “Because we also have to keep the inventory level for other drugs, we are making efforts to find the right balance in allocating our manufacturing capacity.”

Seo also said he will relinquish the chairmanship at the end of this year as planned, even though the company's COVID-19 treatment projects would continue next year.

“I will be in charge of COVID-19 treatment development until the end of this year, and the rest will be taken care of by my successor,” Seo said without identifying his successor. “Celltrion is not a weak company whose COVID-19 projects will face difficulties due to the management changeover.”

In January last year, Seo said he would step down from his chairmanship at the end of this year, after the company secured a global sales network.