Public health experts have criticised the US for securing for itself a large supply of the only drug licensed so far to treat Covid-19. The Donald Trump administration announced last week that it had an agreement with Gilead Sciences to make the bulk of their production of remdesivir available to Americans during the next three months.
In a statement, Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar said, “To the extent possible, we want to ensure that any American patient who needs remdesivir can get it.” The department said it had secured 500,000 treatments of the drug through September, representing 100% of Gilead's July production capacity and 90% of its capacity in August and September.
Until now, Gilead had donated treatment courses to the US and other countries. Last week, it announced the price of the treatment going forward. In 127 poor or middle-income countries, Gilead is allowing generic makers to supply the drug. In a statement, the California-based company said its agreement with the US allows for unneeded supplies to be sent to other countries. It said it is “working as quickly as possible” to enable access worldwide. But it noted that the US is seeing a significant rise in Covid cases, while “most EU and other developed countries have reduced their levels of disease considerably.”
Remdesivir is the only drug licensed by both the US and the European Union as a treatment for those with severe illness from the coronavirus. Gilead had been developing remdesivir for years as a viral treatment aided by millions in funding from the US government. The company's statement said that the company is exploring ways to support access to remdesivir beyond the US, and to the 127 developing countries.
