US buys full stock of Covid drug remdesivir | Abroad

America says it buys all the medicines that Gilead can make for July, 94,200. 90% of the capacity will be used for the months of August and September. “President Trump has made a great deal,” said Health Minister Alex Azar.

Because Gilead has a patent on the drug, there is therefore nothing left for Europe in the coming months, reports The Guardian. “We want to do everything we can to give it to every American patient who needs braking desivir,” Azar said. So America first.

‘Too expensive’

The US action is once again pressing the medical world on the facts; remdesivir is particularly scarce. Manufacturing enough medicines for the entire world will be a huge challenge.

The drug is also very expensive. A shorter six-dose treatment costs $ 3,200, a longer treatment even $ 5,720. Critics believe that price is unfair. The Institute for Clinical and Economic Review estimated the actual price to be ten times lower. In addition, according to Public Citizen, Gilead has received over $ 70 million in development grants; the sky-high costs would therefore be unethical. The US will pay hundreds of millions for brake desivir for the first few months alone.

‘Conflict of interest’

The Independent points out that one of the government’s health officials, Joseph Grogan, was a prominent Gilead lobbyist until recently. “Is there a conflict of interest here? Absolutely, ”said Professor Robert Klitzman, head of the Bioethics Program at Columbia University. The question is whether Minister Azar has difficulty with the high price. In the period when he was CEO of pharmaceutical company Eli Lilly, drug prices rose significantly, The Independent reports. For example, the price of insulin doubled.

Remdisivir is one of the few drugs whose efficacy has been proven by the largest and most important health organizations. Some hospitals and institutes claim to make gains with other medicines, such as a combination of zinc, antibiotics and the dirt-cheap hydroxychloroquine (HCQ). When a study in The Lancet showed that the latter drug – previously recommended by President Trump – was unsafe, WHO pulled his hands off HCV. That study, which half the world was blind on, later turned out to have all suspicions of fraud.

Germany: We keep Gilead’s commitment

Germany has since responded to questions from journalists about the drug. “The federal government has bought early brake desivir for the treatment of corona patients. Currently, there are still enough supplies, “the Ministry of Health said in a statement. It also states that supplier Gilead is obliged to supply sufficient quantities in the future if the European Commission conditionally approves the product. That approval is expected this week. “We expect Gilead to fulfill its obligations,” the ministry said.

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