Russia Approves First COVID-19 Drug For Sale; Company Confirms Report! 

Amid the vaccine trial and production, Russia has approved R-Pharm's Coronavir treatment for outpatients with mild to moderate COVID-19 infections. The company said the antiviral drug could be rolled out to pharmacies in the country by next week. 

According to a Reuters report, Coronavir's approval as a prescription drug follows the green light for another Russian COVID-19 drug, Avifavir, in May both the drugs are based on favipiravir, which was developed in Japan and is widely used there as the basis for viral treatments.

Meanwhile, R-Pharm's announcement is another sign Russia is pushing hard to take a global lead in the race against the virus. So far, Russia has clinched several international deals for supplies of its Sputnik-V vaccine.

R-Pharm said it received approval for Coronavir involving 168 patients with COVID-19. The drug was first approved for in-hospital use to treat COVID-19 in July, Reuters further reported.

However, the company's spokeswoman said that R-Pharm has begun their talks with pharmacies about orders and the supplies are expected to be rolled out as soon as next week.

Sharing details about the drug, Coronavir is made at R-Pharm's facility in Yaroslavl, about 300 km (186 miles) northeast of Moscow. While, Avifavir has been available in hospitals since June but has yet to be supplied to pharmacies.

Both are based on the active ingredient favipiravir, which is also the key component in Fujifilm Holdings Corp's antiviral drug Avigan, that was approved in Japan in 2014.