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The Guardian reports that the United States has bought all the drug remdesivir, which has been approved in the country for the treatment of severe COVID-19 patients. In the next three months, other countries will have problems with the availability of the drug.
- Remdesivir has been approved by the FDA and EMA to treat severe forms of COVID-19. The Americans bought the entire supply of the drug from the only company that produces it
- This means that in the next three months other countries will have extremely difficult access to the drug for COVID-19 patients
- The US government is consistently pursuing an ‘America first’ strategy, which includes not only COVID-19 drugs, but also the rights to a possible vaccine
The US protects itself against COVID-19 at everyone’s expense
Experts are concerned about the US actions to take up the stocks of remdesivir. As The Guardian writes, the Donald Trump administration has shown that it is ready to outperform and surpass all other countries just to secure medical supplies to the United States.
Anthony Fauci, director of the US National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, said that the US has already started mass production of COVID-19 vaccines, which have not yet been approved so that once approved by the US Food and Drug Administration, they can be immediately distributed. It also worries experts as it could cause unequal access to vaccines for all countries.
Zobacz: Americans will start producing the vaccine before the end of clinical trials
“They have access to most doses of remdesivir, so there’s nothing left for Europe,” said Dr. Andrew Hill, Senior Research Fellow at the University of Liverpool.
Remdesivir is a drug made only by Gilead and has been approved for the treatment of severe forms of COVID-19 in the United States and Europe. The first 140 doses supplied by the company for clinical trials have already been used.
Now the US has bought over 500. doses, accounting for all Gilead production in July and 90 percent. from August and September. This means that no other country will be able to purchase this drug for three months.
President Trump has made an amazing deal to ensure Americans have access to the first approved drug for COVID-19. To the extent possible, we want to ensure that every American patient who needs remdesivir receives it. At the same time, the Donald Trump government is doing everything it can to learn more about life-saving drugs for COVID-19 and ensure Americans have access to these options, “said US Secretary of Health and Social Care Alex Azar.
The editorial board recommends:
- The European Medicines Agency approves remdesivir for the treatment of COVID-19
- The FDA approves remdesivir for the treatment of COVID-19 in critically ill patients
It is not only the United States that needs remdesivir
The United States has the highest number of new cases per day. So far, 2 2 727 people have been infected with the SARS-CoV-996 coronavirus in this country, and 19 130 have died due to COVID-122 (only yesterday as many as 764). The US has been facing a pandemic since roughly the same time as European countries. The mistakes made at the beginning of the pandemic still fail to contain it.
But not only the United States needs remdesivir. The situation is also terrible in Brazil, Our Country and India, where tens of thousands of new SARS-CoV-2 infections are recorded daily. In Brazil, 59 people have died since the start of the pandemic, and only yesterday the government of the country reported 656 deaths. Many people also die in India, Mexico and Peru.
Treatment with six doses of remdesivir was priced at $ 3200.
See what the pandemic looks like in the world:
- The coronavirus pandemic is accelerating. 10 million people infected worldwide
- Over 500 death toll of the coronavirus pandemic
The US government implements the “America First” strategy
The buyout of the global remdesivir reserve by the US government is not only a response to the growing number of infections and deaths. The Donald Trump government has consistently pursued an “America first” stance. The rulers not only want exclusive COVID-19 therapies, but also vaccines, if they are created.
French producer Sanofi said in May that the United States would be the first to have access to the COVID-19 vaccine as soon as it was ready, according to The Guardian. Company CEO Paul Hudson said: “The US government is entitled to the largest pre-order because it has taken the risk of investing in research.” Under pressure from the French authorities, the company withdrew from these words.
The Donald Trump government also introduced a special law to block the shipment of certain US-made medical goods abroad.
The editorial board recommends:
- Anthony Fauci: COVID-19 is my worst nightmare
- Over 100 coronavirus fatalities in the US
- The disastrous consequences of the late introduction of isolation in the US. Epidemiologists argue that decisions should be made two weeks earlier