Gilead ‘significantly’ increases supply of treatment Remdesivir to COVID-19 patients

*Company says recent trial showed the drug reduced Coronavirus patients’ recovery time by an average of five days

Isola Moses | ConsumerConnect

Following the data from a recent large-scale trial of the experimental drug pronounced significant to virus infection management, Gilead Sciences, maker of the COVID-19 treatment Remdesivir has said that it will have an “ample” supply of its antiviral drug to give to hospitalised COVID-19 patients by end of October 2020.

Daniel O’Day, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Gilead Sciences, Friday, October 9 informed CNBC that data from a recent large-scale trial of the experimental drug were “meaningful.”

O’Day on ‘Squawk Box’ said: “They’ll definitely help patients around the world who have the misfortune of entering into the hospital to get better, and I’m really pleased to say that we have ample supply.”

The Gilead Chief was speaking of the results of a trial that showed Remdesivir shortened the time it took for patients to recover by an average of five days.

A recent study published in The New England Journal of Medicine, stated that patients were also 50 percent more likely to have recovered 15 days after treatment compared to those given a placebo.

Merdad Parsey, Gilead’s Chief Medical Officer, in a statement said: “These data from a rigorous, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial add to the breadth of evidence from additional randomised clinical trials supporting the use of Veklury as a standard of care for the treatment of COVID-19 in hospitalised patients.”

Recall that Remdesivir, which works by reducing viral replication in the body, was reportedly one of the Coronavirus medications that United States President Donald Trump used when he contracted the virus.

The medication must currently be administered via an IV, but Gilead has said it’s working on an inhaled version.

According to O’Day, the company has started investing in ramping up manufacturing “long before we knew whether Remdesivir would work.”

“We brought on more than 40 additional manufacturing partners and our teams worked day and night to find ways to shorten the lead time, without compromising on safety or rigor.

“Supply of Veklury is expected to meet global demand by the end of this month, enabling the purchase of Veklury both to treat patients and to support national stockpiling of the medicine for current and future surges of COVID-19.”