Gilead Sciences' remdesivir receives US emergency approval for coronavirus treatment

Gilead Sciences Inc’s (NASDAQ:GILD) antiviral candidate remdesivir received emergency-use authorisation by the US Food and Drug Administration late on Friday. The pharma giant said that allocation of the currently available supply will be based on the urgency of patients’ needs, in the cities most heavily hit by the pandemic. READ: Gilead Sciences' remdesivir could get US emergency approval for coronavirus treatment The authorisation is temporary and only related to the treatment of Covid-19, as the drug has not currently been approved anywhere for any other conditions. The news comes after three trials confirmed that remdesivir allows for a faster recovery in patients with severe symptoms, while other studies are ongoing to confirm its safety and efficacy in treating coronavirus. Gilead said it has “substantially” shortened the manufacturing lead time from raw materials through to the finished product and is planning to outstrip its production goal of 1mln treatment courses by December. Shares in premarket trading rose 3% to US$82.70.