The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has officially approved remdesivir as a treatment for coronavirus, drug manufacturer Gilead Sciences announced Thursday.
The Ebola drug, which was already being used to treat COVID-19 patients under an emergency use authorization, has been found to reduce recovery time by an average of four days among patients who are sick enough to be hospitalized.
"Since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, Gilead has worked relentlessly to help find solutions to this global health crisis," Gilead CEO and Chairman Daniel O'Day said in a statement.
"It is incredible to be in the position today, less than one year since the earliest case reports of the disease now known as COVID-19, of having an FDA-approved treatment in the U.S. that is available for all appropriate patients in need," he said.
