Gilead and the Second Lockdown
Things were starting to look up when states were rolling back stay-at-home orders. Unemployment began to decline and it seemed we had flattened the curve. Treatment, other than ventilators, were in development and being pushed by government officials. On top of everything the stock market was enjoying closer to 52-week highs. Unfortunately, states that were opening up were seeing a significant increase in cases. Fears that the virus had not been slowed were rising up across the country. People were happy to go back to work, but government officials and healthcare experts were worried of what was coming.
Today, there are over 2.7 million cases and 128,600 deaths in the U.S. Despite the amazing jobs reports that have come out recently, thoughts of the virus spreading just as quickly as before the original lockdown are on every elected official’s mind. One state that has been watched closely, and was also one of several states to let their stay-at-home order expire first, is Texas. Increased testing has allowed hospitals and healthcare workers to know exactly how many people really have the virus, rather than relying on signs of symptoms. “Houston reported a 4.3% jump in intensive-care patients…in less than two weeks,” Bloomberg News reported. Major cities were witnessing a jump in cases across Texas. Counties with higher populations saw a face mask requirement early on during the phases of reopening.
On Thursday, July 2nd, Governor Greg Abbott issued a mandate that most Texans will be required to wear a face mask in public. Many Democratic leaders in Texas criticized the Republican Governor for not issuing the order sooner.
Many Americans, Texans included, are ready to go back to work. A better than expected jobs report from June reinforces that. What many fear, and what could cause another recession, is a second state-mandated stay-at-home order. There were some Democratic officials who were pushing for a second lockdown before Governor Abbott stated that the reopening of Texas will be on hold until the new-cases-per-day are manageable again.
The U.S. economy relies on such states as California, Washington, New York, Florida, and Texas. A second lockdown will cause states to shut down businesses once more. Without those local economies in full gear, the national market will come to a halt once again. With that in mind, the federal government has gone to extreme lengths to push for better, more effective treatment.
So far the company with the most promise is Gilead Science (NASDAQ: GILD) with their drug, Remdesivir. Recently, the Trump Administration has struck a deal with Gilead that will provide patients on government-sponsored health insurance with the Remdesivir treatment at a discount. “The agreement guarantees HHS more than 500,000 treatment courses, including all of Gilead’s projected production for July and most of its production of August and September,” reported the Epoch Times. “An average treatment course requires 6.25 vials…Hospitals will pay no more than $3,200 per course.”
Although the cost for those on private health insurance will be much higher, patients will be saving on average $12,000 in hospital bills due to the treatment quickening recovery time thereby reducing the length of time spent in the hospital. If Gilead can produce enough treatments at a reasonable cost that insurance companies, and patients, can cover, then Americans will be closer to seeing an end to a COVID-19-induced shutdown.