Gilead’s Remdesivir Becomes First Virus Treatment to Win FDA Nod

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved Gilead Sciences Inc.’s antiviral therapy remdesivir on Thursday, making it the first drug to obtain formal clearance for treating the coronavirus.

Regulators had granted an emergency-use authorization for remdesivir earlier this year, and since then the drug has become a widely used therapy in hospitalized Covid-19 patients. It was given to President Donald Trump this month when he was diagnosed with the virus.

The approval of remdesivir, sold under the brand name Veklury, will allow Gilead to market the drug and talk about its benefits to doctors, nurses, and patients. That could ...