Focus Taiwan
Date: 02/26/2020
By: Wu Hsin-yun and Evelyn Kao

Taipei, Feb. 26 (CNA) National Taiwan University Hospital (NTUH) has consulted with the United States and is to start clinical trials in Taiwan of the antiviral drug remdesivir for the treatment of COVID-19 coronavirus, the Central Epidemic Command Center (CECC) said Wednesday.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved the first U.S. clinical trial involving the use of remdesivir on patients with coronavirus to evaluate the efficacy of the experimental antiviral drug developed by American biotech firm Gilead Sciences.

Remdesivir could provide an effective treatment for COVID-19 victims and NTUH is preparing to make Taiwan part of the clinical research, said Shih Chung-liang (石崇良), director-general of the Ministry of Health and Welfare's Department of Medical Affairs.

Under the government's draft plan, one hospital each in northern, central and southern Taiwan will be designated for the screening of potential patients for the clinical trials, but details are still being worked out, according to Shih.    [FULL  STORY]