Gilead Sciences prices remdesivir at $2,340 per patient in US for COVID-19 treatment

Gilead Sciences Inc. has priced remdesivir, its COVID-19 drug candidate, at $390 per vial for the United States and governments of other developed countries. Daniel O’Day, Chairman & CEO of Gilead Sciences, said in a statement that the vast majority of patients are expected to receive a 5-day treatment course with six vials, which takes the total cost to $2,340 per patient.

The research-based biopharmaceutical company had evaluated 5-day and 10-day dosing durations of the remdesivir in hospitalised patients with severe manifestations of COVID-19. The company had said that patients who received the drug within 10 days of symptoms responded better to the treatment.

“The study demonstrates the potential for some patients to be treated with a 5-day regimen, which could significantly expand the number of patients who could be treated with our current supply of Remdesivir,” said Merdad Parsey, Chief Medical Officer of Gilead Sciences, in a statement.

The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) also issued an Emergency Use Authorization for remdesivir for the treatment of COVID-19 due to ongoing health emergency. In the United States, remdesivir is an investigational drug that has not been approved by the FDA for any use, and its safety and efficacy for the treatment of COVID-19 has not been established.

Read: Health Ministry Approves Emergency Use Of Remdesivir For 'moderate' COVID-19 Patients

Calls it 'affordable'

Announcing the rates, O’Day said that the intent behind such decision was to remove the need for country-by-country negotiations on price. He added that the company has discounted the price to a level that is affordable for developed countries with the lowest purchasing power. 

“At the current price of $390 per vial, remdesivir is positioned to achieve the aim of providing immediate net savings for healthcare systems,” claimed O’Day.

The price for private insurance companies has been fixed at $520 per vial. The firm has entered into an agreement with the US Department of Health and Human Services to manage allocation to hospitals until the end of September. O'Day added that they have also entered into agreements with generic manufacturers in developing countries to deliver treatment at a substantially lower cost.

Read: COVID-19: Japan Says Hospitals Administering Remdesivir On Severely Ill Patients