Gilead prices COVID-19 drug candidate remdesivir at $2,340 per patient in US

Gilead Sciences Inc has priced its COVID-19 drug candidate remdesivir at $390 per vial for the United States and governments of other developed countries, it said on Monday, setting the price of a five-day course at $2,340 per patient.

The price for U.S. private insurance companies will be $520 per vial, the drugmaker said, which equates to a total of $3,120 per patient.

Gilead has entered into an agreement with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) whereby the department and states will manage allocation to hospitals until September end.

After this period, once supplies are less constrained, HHS will stop managing the allocation, the company said.

Remdesivir's price has been a topic of intense debate since the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved its emergency use COVID-19 patients in May.

Experts have suggested that Gilead would need to avoid the appearance of taking advantage of a health crisis for profits.

Wall Street analysts have said the antiviral drug could generate billions of dollars in revenue over the next couple of years if the pandemic continues.