NBC News: Massive WHO remdesivir study suggests no Covid-19 benefit. Doctors aren’t so sure.
“A huge, global study of potential medications to treat Covid-19 suggests remdesivir — one of the few available drugs for the virus — may offer no real benefit to the sickest patients. But doctors on the front lines of treating severe cases advise caution when interpreting the findings. … Outside experts also said it’s no surprise that the drug didn’t appear to benefit the sickest patients. Remdesivir is an antiviral medication. Like Tamiflu for influenza, antivirals generally are more effective when given early in the course of illness…” (Edwards, 10/16).

U.S. News & World Report: WHO Addresses Gilead’s Pushback on Remdesivir Trial
“The World Health Organization on Friday addressed criticism from drugmaker Gilead over the group’s interim finding that the antiviral remdesivir has ‘little or no effect in preventing death from COVID-19 or reducing time in hospital.’ WHO’s interim trial results, which it said would be published soon in a peer-reviewed journal, sparked pushback from Gilead, which said in a statement that the data appears inconsistent with evidence from other studies of the drug. … WHO’s guideline development group will examine the data and possibly update their policy on the use of remdesivir in a couple weeks…” (Smith-Schoenwalder, 10/16).

Additional coverage of the trial and reaction is available from Bloomberg, Reuters, and U.N. News.