Supplies of the drug remdesivir have run short more than once. But despite disappointing WHO trial results, European doctors still plan on using it - for now.
Until now, physicians have employed the antiviral as one of the most important tools in their arsenal against Covid-19.
Gilead Sciences announced recently that it expected supply to “meet global demand by the end of this month,” and that it would begin fulfilling new remdesivir orders to Europe this week, after the signing of a new agreement with the commission — as the representative of multiple governments, including the United Kingdom. In Poland, the drug was recently in short supply, and in the U.K., it’s being rationed. Spain faced a shortage over the summer.
He recalled that several European Union member states had restricted pharmaceutical shipments to neighboring nations at the start of the pandemic, and could do so again.“If there’s another crisis, countries will again look to create stockpiles, and ask if they have enough reserves,” he said. “When the s--- hits the fan, countries often save themselves first.”
“We have to improve on all of those areas. And I think it's very clear to everybody, that's a work in progress.”Despite efforts by the European Commission to develop a new strategy that strikes a balance between more autonomous supply chains and an open market for free trade, the problems around pharmaceutical supply and distribution could extend beyond Europe’s borders.
Medical workers stretch a patient from an Italian Red Cross ambulance into an intensive care unit set up in a sports center outside the San Raffaele hospital in Milan, during the Covid-19 pandemic, on March 23, 2020.“In some countries, these dialogues and coordinations are going quite well,” Adrian van den Hoven, the director general of generic developer and manufacturing industry body Medicines for Europe, said pointing to Italy where the first wave of infections was sudden and severe.
“If a big wave happens, and there's a strong demand, a lot of governments will likely press the panic button,” he said.
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