President Trump Announces Remdesivir Authorized for Emergency COVID-19 Treatment, Discusses Ending HIV and Hepatitis C
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On May 1, 2020, President Donald J. Trump announced that the investigational antiviral drug remdesivir has been authorized by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for emergency use to treat suspected or laboratory-confirmed COVID-19 in adults and children hospitalized with severe disease. The President made the announcement in the Oval Office alongside U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar, FDA Commissioner Dr. Stephen Hahn, Coronavirus Response Coordinator Dr. Deborah L. Birx, and Gilead Sciences CEO Daniel O’Day.
During his remarks, the President discussed the steps taken by his Administration to end the coronavirus epidemic, as well as its work with private industry and other partners on Ending the HIV Epidemic: A Plan for America, the nation’s initiative to reduce new HIV infections in the United States by 75 percent in five years and by 90 percent by 2030. The President also discussed the progress made in treating hepatitis C, noting that the medication is “not just keeping [hepatitis C] down…it’s an actual cure.”
Secretary Azar underscored the President’s leadership on the EHE initiative, saying, “...we really have this in our grasp...the tools were there, but it took President Trump’s call to action to make this a reality.”
Read the Remarks by President Trump in Announcement on Remdesivir.