Gilead Sciences New COVID-19 Treatment Cost is Raising Alarms

There are growing concerns that pharmaceutical company Gilead Sciences may be gouging the price of a new COVID-19 treatment known as remdesivir. The Federal Food and Drug Administration (FDA) authorized use of the treatment, as it has potential to be a life-saving medication for those infected with the virus. Soon after getting the go-ahead from the FDA, Gilead Sciences announced they would be charging $3,120 for a typical, five-day dose per patient. U.S. Rep. Diana DeGette (D-CO) voiced misgivings that the high cost will not be readily accessible to a large percentage of the American population.

DeGette is chair of the House Energy and Commerce Oversight and Investigations panels, which oversees the nation’s healthcare industry. Included in the panel’s duties is approving which drugs will be distributed to the public market, including those evaluated by the FDA. As of May 1, the FDA issued the emergency authorization of remdesivir as COVID-19 cases continued to spread exponentially. Despite the drug showing promising results during clinical trials, there is a lack of concrete information regarding its safety and effectiveness.

“We are in the midst of a full-blown global health crisis,” DeGette said. “We need to make sure any treatment that has the potential to save lives is available to all those who need it, not just those who can afford it. We have seen firsthand how the skyrocketing cost of insulin made it inaccessible to millions of Americans who desperately need it. We can’t allow the same thing to happen when it comes to potential treatments for this virus.”

The fear that Gilead may be motivated by money and not the public’s best interest stems from their recent court battle with The Department of Health and Human Services in 2019/20. The pharmaceutical company was sued by the U.S. in response to an alleged patent infringement of Truvada and Descovy, both HIV prevention drugs. Truvada and Descovy are both antiviral drugs, also known as PrEP, or Pre-exposure prophylaxis.

The issue arose when Gilead was granted a patent for these drugs, funneling millions of dollars funded by the government and philanthropic donors into their own pockets. In turn, Gilead monopolized access to Truvada and Descovoy, disallowing any outside agencies from dually distributing the drugs. Despite all the money they received, Gilead hiked up consumer prices for drugs that were proving potential to reduce new infections of the HIV/AIDS epidemic by 90 percent. While Gilead lost two, separate court battles on the issue of PrEP patents, they are now leading the allocation of remdesivir in the wake of an extensively more detrimental pandemic.

The current threat facing Americans is Gilead’s reputation for exploitative pricing in the wake of a public health crisis; who’s to say they won’t try it again? Not to mention the fact that the economy is currently in a highly vulnerable position, with thousands out of work and without insurance to cover the new treatment. However, DeGette has consistently used her position on the investigation panel to fight corrupt private manufacturers. She is determined to make necessary and lifesaving medications readily available to those who need them without increasing medical debt across the board.