Drug-maker Pfizer has stopped the manufacture and sale of its popular cough syrup, Corex, following a recent Government notification that reportedly bans 300 fixed-doze combination (FDC) drugs, including this one.
Corex has a well established efficacy and safety profile in India for more than 30 years, Pfizer said, adding that it was exploring “options at its disposal.”
FDCs have been under the Government scanner for several years now and several irrational products have already been taken out of the market. Corex includes codeine, a controlled substance rationed out under the Government’s watch, given its narcotic nature.
Discontinuing the product will have an adverse impact on Pfizer’s revenue and profitability, the company said, as Corex recorded a sale of Rs 176 crore for the nine months ended December 2015.
The other similar product facing the heat following the Government’s move includes Abbott’s cough syrup Phensydyl (also containing codeine).