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July 03, 2020

The European Commission has authorized Remdesivir for treatment against Covid-19. The authorization followed an accelerated procedure, it comes a week after the recommendation of the European Medicines Agency (Ema), and approval by the Member States. These are record times, in normal periods it takes over two months to move from application to EU authorization.

The data on Remdesivir were evaluated in exceptionally short times through a periodic review procedure, which Ema can use during public health emergencies to evaluate the data as soon as available. This allowed the authorization to be granted quickly, within a week of Ema's recommendation, compared to the 67 days that it usually takes.

A speed of reaction that according to Commissioner for Health and Food Safety Stella Kyriakides indicates "the EU's determination to respond quickly whenever new treatments become available. We will leave no stone unturned in our efforts to ensure efficient treatments or vaccines against the coronavirus ".

Remdesivir now benefits from a conditional marketing authorization, which is one of the EU regulatory mechanisms created to facilitate early access to medicines in emergency situations and in response to threats to public health such as the current pandemic .

Remdesivir is a drug created to fight the Ebola virus. Developed by Gilead, it has been a candidate since the beginning of the pandemic to be one of the most useful "weapons" against the virus.