Jun 29, 2020 - Health

HHS secures 500,000 doses of remdesivir

Caitlin Owens, author of Vitals

White House coronavirus task force coordinator Deborah Birx and HHS Sec. Alex Azar

The Trump administration has secured 500,000 doses of remdesivir, the first drug shown to be effective at treating hospitalized coronavirus patients, ensuring these doses will be for U.S. use.

Between the lines: The administration is not directly purchasing the drug, but it will use coronavirus hospitalization data to determine how to allocate it by state, and state health departments will decide which hospitals will get the drug.

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Bob Herman
6 hours ago - Health

Trump administration invests $2 billion in coronavirus drugs

A Novavax researcher prepares to test the vaccine. Photo: Andrew Caballero-Reynolds/AFP via Getty Images

The Department of Health and Human Services and Department of Defense have awarded $1.6 billion to Novavax and $450 million to Regeneron Pharmaceuticals as part of the federal government's efforts to speed up the development of coronavirus treatments.

The bottom line: Federal scientists are holding out hope that these companies' treatments, along with other vaccines in development, will snuff out the spread of the coronavirus.

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Marisa Fernandez
4 hours ago - Health

Arizona reports record daily coronavirus deaths and hospitalizations

Arizona continues to administer coronavirus tests. Photo: Mark Ralston/AFP via Getty Images

Arizona reported a record 117 new coronavirus deaths, 3,356 total hospitalizations, and 869 ICU beds in use on Tuesday, according to data from Arizona's Department of Health Services.

Why it matters: The number of daily deaths in coronavirus hotspots across the Sunbelt has not reached the levels that New York saw at the peak of its outbreak, likely because many of the new cases are young people with little to no symptoms. But that could start to change as hospitals reach maximum capacity and more vulnerable groups contract the virus.

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Axios
Updated 3 hours ago - Health

World coronavirus updates

Data: The Center for Systems Science and Engineering at Johns Hopkins; Map: Axios Visuals

India has reported more coronavirus cases than any other country besides the U.S. and Brazil, per Johns Hopkins data.

By the numbers: More than 539,000 people have died from the virus and more than 11.6 million have tested positive worldwide. More than 6.3 million patients have recovered.

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