China Set to Patent Gilead’s Experimental Coronavirus Drug

Follow the money! The esteemed investor site The Motley Fool explained this week:

But who will control the licensing and supply of the drug, now being promoted by the media as the preferred treatment for Covid-19, versus Hydroxychloroquine, a $20 generic?

Remember the lab where the virus probably originated?

“The Wuhan Institute of Virology — based in the Chinese city at the center of the epidemic — has applied for a patent in China for the use of the antiviral drug, known as Remdesivir, in treating Covid-19. The application was made on Jan. 21 together with a military academy,” according to a Feb. 4 statement on the institute’s website.

If the application succeeds, Gilead would supply the U.S. and other countries, but not China – the largest customer in the world.

“The good thing in having a patent is that it would lead to cross-licensing situations that give China more bargaining chips in negotiating the licensing fee with Gilead,” Wang Yanyu, a senior partner at AllBright Law Offices in Beijing, explained.

While the politicians in the U.S. were busy closing the Senate and dominating the airwaves with a foregone no at the President’s impeachment trial, China was busy buying up supplies to treat the virus and making this bet on Remdesivir.

“While Gilead’s experimental drug isn’t licensed or approved anywhere in the world, it is being rushed into trials in China on coronavirus patients after showing early signs of being highly effective. It may go into clinical trials in China as early as next week in patients with moderate and severe symptoms of the pathogen,” Merdad Parsey, Gilead’s chief medical officer, said.

In the journal Cell Research Wuhan Institute scientists said Gilead’s Remdesivir, and Hydroxychloroquine, are “highly effective” in laboratory studies at thwarting the coronavirus.

China is capable of manufacturing Hydroxychloroquine, and now wants not only access to Remdesivir, but also worldwide control of the drug.

Gilead will still retain the global rights to market the antiviral medication, once approved, in treating illnesses such as Ebola and SARS, the Wuhan institute said.

If China grants the patent, it will control the use and price of Remdesivir, enabling huge profits from treating a worldwide virus. Gilead’s share from working with China remains unclear at this time, but dividing up a global Remdesivir treatment conservative total of even 100 million patients would yield a $200 billion payoff.

Will Congress, the media or the medical profession censure the company for such a deal?

Unlikely, since Big Pharma spends tens of billions of dollars on ads and other marketing, including direct payments to universities and doctors.

Totals listed below account for payments during the 2018 calendar year that mention Gilead products.

GILEAD SCIENCES INC Payments in 2018 (from Propublica)

26,534 doctors and 131 teaching hospitals

Totals listed below account for payments during the 2018 calendar year that mention this product. If a payment record mentions more than one product, the entire value will be included in each of those products.

Gilead products, number of doctors, and total paid

EPCLUSA               7,487    $4.32M

BIKTARVY             3,937     $2.08M

TRUVADA             3,496     $1.65M

VEMLIDY              3,268     $1.58M

ZYDELIG               1,283     $962K

RANEXA                2,290    $870K

CAYSTON              559       $292K

YESCARTA            233        $218K

LETAIRIS               1,566     $181K

  HARVONI              176        $29,211

Top Doctors Receiving Payments From Gilead in 2018

RICHARD WHITLEY
Pediatric Infectious Diseases
BIRMINGHAM, AL
$302K

ZOBAIR YOUNOSSI
Surgery
FALLS CHURCH, VA
$234K

SORANA SEGAL- MAURER
Infectious Disease
FLUSHING, NY
$142K

CHRISTIAN RAMERS
Infectious Disease
SAN DIEGO, CA
$138K

CALVIN PAN
Gastroenterology
FLUSHING, NY
$135K

ANTHONY MARTINEZ
Internal Medicine
BUFFALO, NY
$130K

BRIAN PEARLMAN
Internal Medicine
ATLANTA, GA
$128K

FELICIA STERMAN
Internal Medicine
SAN FRANCISCO, CA
$122K

SAMMY SAAB
Transplant Surgery
LOS ANGELES, CA
$121K

DOUGLAS CUNNINGHAM
Geriatric Medicine
SCOTTSDALE, AZ
$114K

CYNTHIA BRINSON
Family Medicine
AUSTIN, TX
$102K

Top Teaching Hospitals Receiving Payments From Gilead in 2018

EMORY UNIVERSITY HOSPITAL
ATLANTA, GA
$2.76M

UNIVERSITY OF ALABAMA HOSPITAL
BIRMINGHAM, AL
$1.76M

MASSACHUSETTS GENERAL HOSPITAL
BOSTON, MA
$1.45M

LANGLEY PORTER PSYCHIATRIC HOSPITAL
SAN FRANCISCO, CA
$1.26M

HAZARD ARH
HAZARD, KY
$793K

KECK HOSPITAL OF USC
LOS ANGELES, CA
$609K

JACKSON MEMORIAL
MIAMI, FL
$595K

HENRY FORD HOSPITAL
DETROIT, MI
$511K

TAMPA GENERAL HOSPITAL
TAMPA, FL
$478K

DANA-FARBER CANCER INSTITUTE
BOSTON, MA
$450K

NEW YORK-PRESBYTERIAN/QUEENS
FLUSHING, NY
$372K

Report on payments to doctors from all healthcare companies!

A video translated from Chinese:

What is your chance of a fatal Covid-19 infection?

We compiled these charts yesterday to demonstrate total deaths per 1,000, 10,000 and 1,000,000 persons by state and country. Some 193 nations are safer and have a lower mortality than the United States. The higher the number, the more chance of death. Only one nation – San Marino – has more than a one-in-a-thousand chance of dying from the disease.

WORLD COVID-19					UNITED STATES COVID-19
	Deaths/	Deaths/	Deaths/			Deaths/	Deaths/	Deaths/
Country	Million	10,000	1,000		State	Million	10,000	1,000
San Marino	1,149	11.490	1.14900		New York	933	9.330	0.93300
Belgium	490	4.900	0.49000		New Jersey	473	4.730	0.47300
Andorra	466	4.660	0.46600		Connecticut	315	3.150	0.31500
Spain	437	4.370	0.43700		Louisiana	278	2.780	0.27800
Italy	391	3.910	0.39100		Massachusetts	250	2.500	0.25000
France	302	3.020	0.30200		Michigan	240	2.400	0.24000
UK	237	2.370	0.23700		Rhode Island	142	1.420	0.14200
Sint Maarten	233	2.330	0.23300		Washington DC	140	1.400	0.14000
Netherlands	215	2.150	0.21500		Illinois	101	1.010	0.10100
Switzerland	161	1.610	0.16100		Pennsylvania	97	0.970	0.09700
Sweden	152	1.520	0.15200		Washington	87	0.870	0.08700
Ireland	124	1.240	0.12400		Indiana	85	0.850	0.08500
USA	123	1.230	0.12300		Maryland	81	0.810	0.08100
Channel Islands	121	1.210	0.12100		Colorado	76	0.760	0.07600
Luxembourg	117	1.170	0.11700		Delaware	71	0.710	0.07100
Bermuda	80	0.800	0.08000		Georgia	66	0.660	0.06600
Monaco	76	0.760	0.07600		Vermont	61	0.610	0.06100
Isle of Man	71	0.710	0.07100		Mississippi	53	0.530	0.05300
Portugal	70	0.700	0.07000		Nevada	53	0.530	0.05300
Iran	61	0.610	0.06100		Ohio	40	0.400	0.04000
Denmark	61	0.610	0.06100		Florida	38	0.380	0.03800
Germany	55	0.550	0.05500		Wisconsin	38	0.380	0.03800
Saint Martin	52	0.520	0.05200		Oklahoma	36	0.360	0.03600
Austria	50	0.500	0.05000		Virginia	33	0.330	0.03300
Canada	42	0.420	0.04200		Missouri	33	0.330	0.03300
Slovenia	36	0.360	0.03600		Alabama	33	0.330	0.03300
British VI	33	0.330	0.03300		Kentucky	33	0.330	0.03300
Martinique	32	0.320	0.03200		Kansas	32	0.320	0.03200
Antigua/Barbuda	31	0.310	0.03100		New Hampshire	31	0.310	0.03100
Norway	30	0.300	0.03000		California	30	0.300	0.03000
Estonia	30	0.300	0.03000		Idaho	27	0.270	0.02700
Panama	28	0.280	0.02800		Arizona	26	0.260	0.02600
Ecuador	27	0.270	0.02700		New Mexico	26	0.260	0.02600
Iceland	26	0.260	0.02600		Maine	26	0.260	0.02600
Liechtenstein	26	0.260	0.02600		South Carolina	24	0.240	0.02400
Turks & Caicos	26	0.260	0.02600		Iowa	24	0.240	0.02400
Turkey	24	0.240	0.02400		Minnesota	24	0.240	0.02400
North Macedonia	24	0.240	0.02400		Tennessee	22	0.220	0.02200
Romania	23	0.230	0.02300		North Carolina	19	0.190	0.01900
Bahamas	23	0.230	0.02300		Texas	18	0.180	0.01800
Dominican Rep.	21	0.210	0.02100		Oregon	18	0.180	0.01800
Israel	20	0.200	0.02000		Nebraska	15	0.150	0.01500
Hungary	20	0.200	0.02000		Arkansas	13	0.130	0.01300
Guadeloupe	20	0.200	0.02000		North Dakota	13	0.130	0.01300
Aruba	19	0.190	0.01900		Alaska	12	0.120	0.01200
Czechia	17	0.170	0.01700		West Virginia	11	0.110	0.01100
Finland	17	0.170	0.01700		Montana	10	0.100	0.01000
Moldova	17	0.170	0.01700		Utah	9	0.090	0.00900
Barbados	17	0.170	0.01700		South Dakota	8	0.080	0.00800
Bosnia	15	0.150	0.01500		Hawaii	7	0.070	0.00700
Mayotte	15	0.150	0.01500		Wyoming	3	0.030	0.00300
Cayman Islands	15	0.150	0.01500
Serbia	14	0.140	0.01400
Lithuania	13	0.130	0.01300
Brazil	12	0.120	0.01200
Peru	12	0.120	0.01200
Greece	11	0.110	0.01100
Croatia	11	0.110	0.01100
Poland	10	0.100	0.01000
Cyprus	10	0.100	0.01000
Algeria	9	0.090	0.00900
Albania	9	0.090	0.00900
Guyana	9	0.090	0.00900
Montenegro	8	0.080	0.00800
Chile	7	0.070	0.00700
Armenia	7	0.070	0.00700
Malta	7	0.070	0.00700
Mauritius	7	0.070	0.00700
Bulgaria	6	0.060	0.00600
Trinidad/Tobago	6	0.060	0.00600
Curaçao	6	0.060	0.00600
S. Korea	5	0.050	0.00500
Mexico	5	0.050	0.00500
Belarus	5	0.050	0.00500
Honduras	5	0.050	0.00500
Belize	5	0.050	0.00500
UAE	4	0.040	0.00400
Philippines	4	0.040	0.00400
Colombia	4	0.040	0.00400
Morocco	4	0.040	0.00400
Bahrain	4	0.040	0.00400
China	3	0.030	0.00300
Saudi Arabia	3	0.030	0.00300
Australia	3	0.030	0.00300
Ukraine	3	0.030	0.00300
Qatar	3	0.030	0.00300
Malaysia	3	0.030	0.00300
Argentina	3	0.030	0.00300
Cuba	3	0.030	0.00300
Tunisia	3	0.030	0.00300
Latvia	3	0.030	0.00300
Lebanon	3	0.030	0.00300
Bolivia	3	0.030	0.00300
Uruguay	3	0.030	0.00300
Russia	2	0.020	0.00200
Japan	2	0.020	0.00200
Singapore	2	0.020	0.00200
Indonesia	2	0.020	0.00200
Egypt	2	0.020	0.00200
Kuwait	2	0.020	0.00200
Iraq	2	0.020	0.00200
New Zealand	2	0.020	0.00200
Azerbaijan	2	0.020	0.00200
Slovakia	2	0.020	0.00200
Cameroon	2	0.020	0.00200
Djibouti	2	0.020	0.00200
Burkina Faso	2	0.020	0.00200
Jamaica	2	0.020	0.00200
Brunei	2	0.020	0.00200
Liberia	2	0.020	0.00200
Cabo Verde	2	0.020	0.00200
Suriname	2	0.020	0.00200
Oman	1	0.010	0.00100
Costa Rica	1	0.010	0.00100
Georgia	1	0.010	0.00100
Paraguay	1	0.010	0.00100
El Salvador	1	0.010	0.00100
Congo	1	0.010	0.00100
South Africa	0.9	0.009	0.00090
Kazakhstan	0.9	0.009	0.00090
Eswatini	0.9	0.009	0.00090
Pakistan	0.8	0.008	0.00080
Afghanistan	0.8	0.008	0.00080
Niger	0.8	0.008	0.00080
Kyrgyzstan	0.8	0.008	0.00080
Thailand	0.7	0.007	0.00070
Jordan	0.7	0.007	0.00070
Mali	0.7	0.007	0.00070
Bangladesh	0.6	0.006	0.00060
Palestine	0.6	0.006	0.00060
Togo	0.6	0.006	0.00060
Hong Kong	0.5	0.005	0.00050
India	0.4	0.004	0.00040
Guinea	0.4	0.004	0.00040
Guatemala	0.4	0.004	0.00040
Somalia	0.4	0.004	0.00040
Gabon	0.4	0.004	0.00040
Botswana	0.4	0.004	0.00040
Gambia	0.4	0.004	0.00040
Ghana	0.3	0.003	0.00030
Ivory Coast	0.3	0.003	0.00030
Taiwan	0.3	0.003	0.00030
DRC	0.3	0.003	0.00030
Sri Lanka	0.3	0.003	0.00030
Kenya	0.3	0.003	0.00030
Venezuela	0.3	0.003	0.00030
Haiti	0.3	0.003	0.00030
Nicaragua	0.3	0.003	0.00030
Senegal	0.2	0.002	0.00020
Sudan	0.2	0.002	0.00020
Zambia	0.2	0.002	0.00020
Syria	0.2	0.002	0.00020
Zimbabwe	0.2	0.002	0.00020
Mauritania	0.2	0.002	0.00020
Uzbekistan	0.1	0.001	0.00010
Nigeria	0.1	0.001	0.00010
Tanzania	0.1	0.001	0.00010
Libya	0.1	0.001	0.00010
Malawi	0.1	0.001	0.00010
Myanmar	0.09	0.001	0.00009
Benin	0.08	0.001	0.00008
Burundi	0.08	0.001	0.00008
Angola	0.06	0.001	0.00006
Ethiopia	0.03	>0.001	0.00003
Réunion	>.03	>0.001	>0.00003
Vietnam	>.03	>0.001	>0.00003
Rwanda	>.03	>0.001	>0.00003
Gibraltar	>.03	>0.001	>0.00003
Cambodia	>.03	>0.001	>0.00003
Madagascar	>.03	>0.001	>0.00003
French Guiana	>.03	>0.001	>0.00003
Equatorial Guinea	>.03	>0.001	>0.00003
French Polynesia	>.03	>0.001	>0.00003
Uganda	>.03	>0.001	>0.00003
Maldives	>.03	>0.001	>0.00003
Guinea-Bissau	>.03	>0.001	>0.00003
Macao	>.03	>0.001	>0.00003
Eritrea	>.03	>0.001	>0.00003
Mozambique	>.03	>0.001	>0.00003
Sierra Leone	>.03	>0.001	>0.00003
Chad	>.03	>0.001	>0.00003
Mongolia	>.03	>0.001	>0.00003
Nepal	>.03	>0.001	>0.00003
Laos	>.03	>0.001	>0.00003
Timor-Leste	>.03	>0.001	>0.00003
New Caledonia	>.03	>0.001	>0.00003
Fiji	>.03	>0.001	>0.00003
Dominica	>.03	>0.001	>0.00003
Namibia	>.03	>0.001	>0.00003
Saint Lucia	>.03	>0.001	>0.00003
Grenada	>.03	>0.001	>0.00003
Saint Kitts/Nevis	>.03	>0.001	>0.00003
St. Vincent	>.03	>0.001	>0.00003
Falkland Islands	>.03	>0.001	>0.00003
Greenland	>.03	>0.001	>0.00003
Montserrat	>.03	>0.001	>0.00003
Seychelles	>.03	>0.001	>0.00003
Vatican City	>.03	>0.001	>0.00003
Papua New Guinea	>.03	>0.001	>0.00003
St. Barth	>.03	>0.001	>0.00003
Western Sahara	>.03	>0.001	>0.00003
Bhutan	>.03	>0.001	>0.00003
Carib. Netherlands	>.03	>0.001	>0.00003
Sao Tome	>.03	>0.001	>0.00003
South Sudan	>.03	>0.001	>0.00003
Anguilla	>.03	>0.001	>0.00003
Saint Pierre	>.03	>0.001	>0.00003
Yemen	>.03	>0.001	>0.00003