Wuhan novel coronavirus (COVID-19) (Image: Wikimedia)
After being diagnosed with COVID-19 earlier this week, President Donald Trump is currently on Remdesivir, an antiviral drug made by Gilead Sciences. The drug has not yet been approved by the Food and Drug Administration, but it was authorized for emergency use in May for treating hospitalized patients with COVID-19. The president received his first IV infusion of the drug on Friday night, and doctors say that he will undergo a five-day treatment of the drug. In addition to Remdesivir, President Trump has also been given an infusion of Regeneron Pharmaceutical Inc.’s REGN-COV2 drug, zinc, vitamin D, an acid reducer, melatonin and aspirin to treat his fever, fatigue, cough and other symptoms.
Remdesivir works by making it harder for the virus to replicate. COVID-19 can spread throughout the body so easily because it carries a special “proofreading” protein that catches replication errors, allowing the virus to replicate correctly. Remdesivir works by disrupting this process.
In response to taking the drug, White House physician, Dr. Sean Conley, said Trump is doing “very well.”
Subscribe to our free weekly newsletter!
A week of political news in your in-box.
We find the news you need to know, so you don't have to.
A whistleblower has provided text messages and emails alleging that Emil Bove, a senior Justice…
The Federal Emergency Management Agency’s (FEMA) acting administrator David Richardson made his first public appearance…
President Donald Trump announced last week that U.S. Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy will serve…
Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth did not notify the White House prior to authorizing a…
Since the beginning of the year, the U.S. has had 1,299 confirmed measles cases as…
A poll conducted in June by the Independent California Institute found that a majority of…
