A lab technician worked on Remdesivir at a facility in Cairo in June. By. AMR ABDALLAH DALSH/REUTERS
Last updated at 3:26 a.m. on Sunday, Sept. 6 2020
The V.I. Department of Health said Friday it received a donation of 800 vials of the Covid-19 treatment Remdesivir from the New Jersey Government.
"The generous donation of the antiviral drug can potentially treat 100-200 patients depending on the severity of the virus and will be split between the Juan F. Luis Hospital and the Roy L. Schneider Hospital. This act of kindness will help the territory tremendously as we continue to build capacity and increase inventory of much-needed supplies," D.O.H. said.
Dr. Tai Hunte-Ceasar, the Healthcare Branch chief for the department’s COVID-19 response, expressed her gratitude for the generous amount of antiviral treatment and stated, “It will be a significant benefit to the treatment of critically ill patients who are hospitalized and at high risk for death.”
The value of the donation is $312,000 and will aid in the treatment of COVID-19 patients across the territory, D.O.H. said.
Remdesivir is the first antiviral drug shown to be effective at treating Covid-19 in a major clinical trial, reducing patients’ recovery times by four days compared with the placebo group in a large study funded by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, according to the Wall Street Journal.
The donation represents a major development in the territory's battle against Covid-19. D.O.H. has reported 16 deaths from the virus so far, most of whom were seniors with severe cases of the virus. Eight hundred vials of remdesivir could result in more lives saved.
