Remdesivir for COVID-19 in short supply

The U.S. government's current supply of remdesivir will run out at the end of this month, CNN reported.

The amount of people who need the medication outnumbered the supply by a 2-to-1 ratio, according to The Wall Street Journal. Gilead Sciences and the Department of Health and Human Services distributed remdesivir for between 40,000 and 74,000 hospitalized patients.

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The government’s last shipment of remdesivir will go out the week of June 29, Robert Kadlec, MD, assistant secretary for preparedness and response at HHS, told CNN.

"Right now, we're waiting to hear from Gilead what is their expected delivery availability of the drug as we go from June to July," Kadlec said. "We're kind of not in negotiations, but in discussions with Gilead as they project what the availability of their product will be,” Kadlec said.

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"Whatever the supply may be, there may not be enough for everyone who may need it,” he added.

However, the government has been working to help Gilead "with some of their supply chain challenges in terms of raw materials and being able to accelerate the process,” Kadlec told CNN.

Gilead said it expects to have more than 500,000 remdesivir treatment courses available by October, and more than a million by December.

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