MAY 4 TODAY IN HISTORY UK GENERAL STRIKE
In 1926, the Trade Union Congress called a general strike in response to government plans to change the working conditions for coal miners. More than 2 million workers across Britain went on strike.
1926: The social general strike - why 1926 failed - Tom Brown
https://libcom.org › library › social-general-strike-1926-failed-brown
Nov 30, 2005 - Why did the British General Strike of 1926 fail? Not because the workers failed to strike. The number of blacklegs was insignificant. The attempt ...
The 1926 General Strike and the Defeat of the Miners ...
https://spartacus-educational.com › Trade Unions › Classroom Activities
The General Strike began on 3rd May, 1926. Arthur Pugh, the chairman of the Trade Union Congress, was put in charge of the strike. The TUC adopted the ...
Britain 1926 General Strike: On the Verge of Revolution
https://www.marxist.com › britain-1926-general-strike-revolution
May 4, 2006 - 75 years ago an earthquake shook the very foundations of British capitalism. In the greatest display of militant power in its history the British ...
General Strike of 1926 | General strikes - WCML
https://www.wcml.org.uk › protest-politics-and-campaigning-for-change
Apr 9, 2020 - Negotiations between the miners and mine-owners failed and with 800,000 coal miners locked out, the General Strike began on 3 May 1926. The ...
Monday, May 04, 2020
May 4 (UPI) -- On this date in history: HAYMARKET RIOT AND BOMBING
In 1886, four police officers were killed when a bomb was thrown during a meeting of anarchists in Chicago's Haymarket Square protesting labor unrest. Four leaders of the demonstration, which became known as the Haymarket Square Riot, were convicted and hanged.
https://plawiuk.blogspot.com/search?q=HAYMARKET
On This Day: Kent State shootings leave 4 students dead
On May 4, 1970, National Guardsmen killed four students at Kent State University in Ohio during a demonstration against the Vietnam War. The shootings set off a nationwide student strike that forced hundreds of schools to temporarily close.
I REMEMBER THIS AS A RADICALIZING MOMENT ACROSS NORTH AMERICA
I WENT TO MY FIRST DEMO AN ANTI WAR DEMO IN SOLIDARITY
Students dive to the ground as the National Guard fires on faculty and students May 4, 1970, to protest the war in Vietnam. File Photo courtesy of Kent State University Archives | License Photo
In 1970, National Guardsmen killed four students at Kent State University in Ohio during a demonstration against the Vietnam War. The shootings set off a nationwide student strike that forced hundreds of schools to temporarily close.
Intense actual footage from The Kent State protest as it decays into chaos and murder. Including the fall of Saigon video images and the final days of that US occupation. Set to CSNY "Ohio" and "Find The Cost of Freedom" non-commercial music versions. Powerful footage here.
On May 4, 1970, National Guardsmen killed four students at Kent State University in Ohio during a demonstration against the Vietnam War. The shootings set off a nationwide student strike that forced hundreds of schools to temporarily close.
I REMEMBER THIS AS A RADICALIZING MOMENT ACROSS NORTH AMERICA
I WENT TO MY FIRST DEMO AN ANTI WAR DEMO IN SOLIDARITY
Students dive to the ground as the National Guard fires on faculty and students May 4, 1970, to protest the war in Vietnam. File Photo courtesy of Kent State University Archives | License Photo
In 1970, National Guardsmen killed four students at Kent State University in Ohio during a demonstration against the Vietnam War. The shootings set off a nationwide student strike that forced hundreds of schools to temporarily close.
Read More
Intense actual footage from The Kent State protest as it decays into chaos and murder. Including the fall of Saigon video images and the final days of that US occupation. Set to CSNY "Ohio" and "Find The Cost of Freedom" non-commercial music versions. Powerful footage here.
Halley's Comet will spark Eta Aquarids meteor shower late Tonight Monday May 4
May 4 -- The second meteor shower in as many weeks will dazzle stargazers around the globe, but the light show late Monday will battle against the glow of a nearly full moon when it reaches its peak.
The Eta Aquarids is an annual meteor shower in early May, and this year reaches its climax on Monday night and the predawn hours Tuesday.
"This shower happens to be one of if not the best in the Southern Hemisphere," AccuWeather astronomy blogger Dave Samuhel said. "It is a moderate shower for the Northern Hemisphere."
People living south of the equator may count as many as 40 shooting stars per hour at the height of the celestial light show, the American Meteor Society said. This includes Australia, New Zealand, Africa and South America.
"From the equator northward, they usually only produce medium rates of 10-30 per hour just before dawn," the AMS added.
This year, the meteor shower will be peaking just two nights before the final supermoon of 2020. The bright moon may make it difficult to see some of the fainter meteors, but it should not completely wash out the shower.
A view of a shooting star during the Perseid meteor shower.
May 4 -- The second meteor shower in as many weeks will dazzle stargazers around the globe, but the light show late Monday will battle against the glow of a nearly full moon when it reaches its peak.
The Eta Aquarids is an annual meteor shower in early May, and this year reaches its climax on Monday night and the predawn hours Tuesday.
"This shower happens to be one of if not the best in the Southern Hemisphere," AccuWeather astronomy blogger Dave Samuhel said. "It is a moderate shower for the Northern Hemisphere."
People living south of the equator may count as many as 40 shooting stars per hour at the height of the celestial light show, the American Meteor Society said. This includes Australia, New Zealand, Africa and South America.
"From the equator northward, they usually only produce medium rates of 10-30 per hour just before dawn," the AMS added.
This year, the meteor shower will be peaking just two nights before the final supermoon of 2020. The bright moon may make it difficult to see some of the fainter meteors, but it should not completely wash out the shower.
A view of a shooting star during the Perseid meteor shower.
Photo by AccuWeather astronomy blogger Dave Samuhel
Of course, weather and cloud cover will significantly factor into how well sky gazers in different parts of the country are able to witness the meteor shower.
Onlookers across the southern United States and the interior West are forecast to have the best viewing contains for 2020's iteration of the Eta Aquarids. Mainly clear conditions are also on tap for parts of New England and into Quebec.
A storm gathering over the central United States will spread disruptive clouds over much of the Midwest and into parts of Appalachia, obscuring the night sky.
Clouds could also spoil the meteor shower over the Pacific Northwest as a storm moves into the region.
The Eta Aquarids will be active on the nights leading up to and immediately following the peak, so people that have cloudy weather on Monday night may be able to spot some shooting stars later in the week when the clouds clear.
No special equipment is needed to watch a meteor shower, although people should pack some patience when heading out to spend some time under the stars.
"Give yourself a solid hour to look for meteors. Get comfortable. Lay down on a blanket, or a reclining chair," Samuhel said.
People should also avoid looking toward the moon, which will be above the horizon for most of the night. Looking at the moon can make it harder to see meteors, so try to focus in the darkest part of the sky.
The best time to watch the meteor shower will be after midnight once the shower's radiant point climbs above the horizon.
The radiant point is simply the part of the sky where the meteors originate, but you do not need to look in this direction so spot meteors. However, as the radiant point climbs higher in the sky, more and more meteors will able to be seen.
Many of the meteor showers throughout the year are caused by debris left behind by comets when they visit the inner solar system. When this debris enters the Earth's atmosphere, it burns incredibly bright for a few brief seconds.
"The majority of visible meteors are caused by particles ranging in size from about that of a small pebble down to a grain of sand, and generally weigh less than 1-2 grams," the AMS said.
The debris that causes the Eta Aquarids is actually dust left behind by one of the most famous comets -- Halley's Comet.
Halley's Comet only orbits the sun once every 75 years, but each year in early May, the Earth passes through some of the debris that it left behind.
"The Eta Aquarids are one of two meteor showers sparked by Halley's comet. The other being the Orionids in October. "
People who miss out on the Eta Aquarids will need to wait a few months before the next opportunity to catch a meteor shower.
According to the AMS, the next major meteor shower will not peak until late July
Of course, weather and cloud cover will significantly factor into how well sky gazers in different parts of the country are able to witness the meteor shower.
Onlookers across the southern United States and the interior West are forecast to have the best viewing contains for 2020's iteration of the Eta Aquarids. Mainly clear conditions are also on tap for parts of New England and into Quebec.
A storm gathering over the central United States will spread disruptive clouds over much of the Midwest and into parts of Appalachia, obscuring the night sky.
Clouds could also spoil the meteor shower over the Pacific Northwest as a storm moves into the region.
The Eta Aquarids will be active on the nights leading up to and immediately following the peak, so people that have cloudy weather on Monday night may be able to spot some shooting stars later in the week when the clouds clear.
No special equipment is needed to watch a meteor shower, although people should pack some patience when heading out to spend some time under the stars.
"Give yourself a solid hour to look for meteors. Get comfortable. Lay down on a blanket, or a reclining chair," Samuhel said.
People should also avoid looking toward the moon, which will be above the horizon for most of the night. Looking at the moon can make it harder to see meteors, so try to focus in the darkest part of the sky.
The best time to watch the meteor shower will be after midnight once the shower's radiant point climbs above the horizon.
The radiant point is simply the part of the sky where the meteors originate, but you do not need to look in this direction so spot meteors. However, as the radiant point climbs higher in the sky, more and more meteors will able to be seen.
Many of the meteor showers throughout the year are caused by debris left behind by comets when they visit the inner solar system. When this debris enters the Earth's atmosphere, it burns incredibly bright for a few brief seconds.
"The majority of visible meteors are caused by particles ranging in size from about that of a small pebble down to a grain of sand, and generally weigh less than 1-2 grams," the AMS said.
The debris that causes the Eta Aquarids is actually dust left behind by one of the most famous comets -- Halley's Comet.
Halley's Comet only orbits the sun once every 75 years, but each year in early May, the Earth passes through some of the debris that it left behind.
"The Eta Aquarids are one of two meteor showers sparked by Halley's comet. The other being the Orionids in October. "
People who miss out on the Eta Aquarids will need to wait a few months before the next opportunity to catch a meteor shower.
According to the AMS, the next major meteor shower will not peak until late July
SENIOR YOGI
After 150 years, rare brown bear captured on video in Spain
A rare brown bear was captured on video by filmmakers in northwestern Spain, after the species had not been seen in the area for about 150 years. File photo courtesy of the Ministry for Ecological Transition and Demographic Challenge, Spain
May 4 (UPI) -- A film crew in Spain announced Monday the release of video of a rare brown bear filmed in a national park -- the first time the species has been seen in the area for more than a century, wildlife officials said.
"The bear, a male aged between 3 and 5, is the first to be filmed in the area and probably the first to have crossed through the region in the past 150 years," Zeitun Films said in a statement.
The bear was filmed by remote cameras during the day and captured by infrared camera at night, eating grubs under a rock in the park, wandering in the rain and scratching its back on a tree.
The bear was spotted in the Invernadeiro national park in northwest Spain in Galicia's Ourense province, where the crew was shooting a film called Montaña ou Morte (Mountain or Death). The bear will make a cameo appearance in the film, the company said.
RELATED Escaped bear captured after 10 months on the loose in Italy
Cantabrian brown bears, native to Europe, have been a protected species in Spain since the 1970s. There might be around 350 brown bears in all of Spain, with about 30 bears living in the Pyrenees mountains of Spain and France, according to the European Wilderness Society.
Filmmakers credited luck and the involvement of two wildlife agents for the chance to capture images of the bear, which likely spent the winter in the national park.
"Years of conservation work in the Invernadeiro national park have allowed it to become a suitable habitat for the brown bear," the film crew said in a statement.
Last year a brown bear was sighted in Portugal, thought to have wandered across the border from northern Spain, the Portuguese Institute for Conservation of Nature and Forests said. The bears had been extinct in Portugal since the end of the 19th Century.
After 150 years, rare brown bear captured on video in Spain
A rare brown bear was captured on video by filmmakers in northwestern Spain, after the species had not been seen in the area for about 150 years. File photo courtesy of the Ministry for Ecological Transition and Demographic Challenge, Spain
May 4 (UPI) -- A film crew in Spain announced Monday the release of video of a rare brown bear filmed in a national park -- the first time the species has been seen in the area for more than a century, wildlife officials said.
"The bear, a male aged between 3 and 5, is the first to be filmed in the area and probably the first to have crossed through the region in the past 150 years," Zeitun Films said in a statement.
The bear was filmed by remote cameras during the day and captured by infrared camera at night, eating grubs under a rock in the park, wandering in the rain and scratching its back on a tree.
The bear was spotted in the Invernadeiro national park in northwest Spain in Galicia's Ourense province, where the crew was shooting a film called Montaña ou Morte (Mountain or Death). The bear will make a cameo appearance in the film, the company said.
RELATED Escaped bear captured after 10 months on the loose in Italy
Cantabrian brown bears, native to Europe, have been a protected species in Spain since the 1970s. There might be around 350 brown bears in all of Spain, with about 30 bears living in the Pyrenees mountains of Spain and France, according to the European Wilderness Society.
Filmmakers credited luck and the involvement of two wildlife agents for the chance to capture images of the bear, which likely spent the winter in the national park.
"Years of conservation work in the Invernadeiro national park have allowed it to become a suitable habitat for the brown bear," the film crew said in a statement.
Last year a brown bear was sighted in Portugal, thought to have wandered across the border from northern Spain, the Portuguese Institute for Conservation of Nature and Forests said. The bears had been extinct in Portugal since the end of the 19th Century.
Last Supermoon of 2020 will be this week
A May supermoon occurs this week when the moon's elliptical orbit is closest to the earth, making the moon appear larger and closer. File photo courtesy of the U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration
May 4 (UPI) -- The last supermoon of 2020, May's so-called "Flower Moon," will be visible in the night skies this week, and its brightness will likely obscure the yearly Eta Aquarids meteor showers, according to NASA.
The supermoon's proximity to the Earth makes it appear 30 percent brighter and about 15 percent larger than a normal full moon.
May 4 (UPI) -- The last supermoon of 2020, May's so-called "Flower Moon," will be visible in the night skies this week, and its brightness will likely obscure the yearly Eta Aquarids meteor showers, according to NASA.
The moon's elliptical orbit is closest to Earth when it reaches perigee, 221,500 miles away. When perigee happens during a full moon phase, a supermoon occurs, called by astrologists "perigee-syzygy," according to the Old Farmer's Almanac.
The Flower Moon, named after blooming May flowers, reaches its closest point to Earth's orbit at 6:45 a.m. EDT Thursday, but will be best viewed Wednesday evening when it rises at 7:10 p.m. EDT, according to the National Weather Service.
The supermoon's proximity to the Earth makes it appear 30 percent brighter and about 15 percent larger than a normal full moon.
RELATED Halley's Comet will spark Eta Aquarids meteor shower late Monday
The next supermoon won't take place until May, 2021, astronomers say.Several supermoons usually occur in consecutive months. This year the sky was lit up by March's "Worm Moon," April's "Pink Moon" and now the "Flower Moon," according to Native American names for full moons.
The overlapping Eta Aquarid meteor shower takes place every spring when the Earth passes through the debris trail from Halley's Comet, according to NASA. About 40-60 meteors per hour are visible on a good year.
But full moons usually wash out the view when the two celestial events happen simultaneously.
The Farmer's Almanac also lists other Native American and colonial traditional names for May's full moon, including the Corn Planting Moon, Mother's Moon, Frog Moon and Milk Moon. https://www.almanac.com/content/full-moon-names
Coronavirus sweeping through massive US prison population
AFP/File / KAMIL KRZACZYNSKI"Help we matter 2" written in a window at the Chicago Cook County Department of Corrections, housing one of largest US jails, amid a coronavirus outbreak among inmates and staff
A massive wave of coronavirus infections is blasting through the world's largest prison population in the United States even as officials begin opening up their economies, saying the disease has plateaued.
One prison in Marion, Ohio has become the most intensely infected institution across the country, with more than 80 percent of its nearly 2,500 inmates, and 175 staff on top of that, testing positive for COVID-19.
Coronavirus deaths are on the increase in jails and penitentiaries across the country, with officials having few options -- they are unable to force adequate distancing in crowded cells and facing shortages of medical personnel and personal protective gear everywhere.
The threat to the 2.3 million-strong US prison population was seen last week in the death of Andrea Circle Bear, a 30-year-old native American woman from South Dakota.
Pregnant when she was placed in a Texas federal prison in March on drug charges, she soon became sick with the disease and was placed on a ventilator, and gave birth by C-section.
She remained on the ventilator and died weeks later.
- 'Time bomb' -
AFP/File / KAMIL KRZACZYNSKIProtesters outside of Chicago City Hall calling for the release of prisoners from jails due to coronavirus
Riots over inadequate protection and slow responses by prison authorities have already taken place in prisons in Washington state and Kansas.
COVID-19 outbreaks among prison officers meanwhile have made the institutions even harder to manage.
At the understaffed, undersupplied Lansing Correctional Facility in Kansas on Thursday, 15-year prison guard David Carter resigned, saying it was better to go without pay than risk his health and that of his family.
"I can no longer be associated with a facility that is a ticking time bomb," he said in a resignation letter.
- Low priority -
The Marion prison outbreak is believed only the tip of the iceberg.
GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA/AFP/File / Sandy Huffaker
Because of the hodge-podge of prison management -- federal, state, and local authorities have their own, and many are run by for-profit private companies -- testing and reporting has been haphazard.
Covid Prison Data, a group of university criminal justice and data experts, says that based on public reports, 13,436 inmates and 5,312 corrections staff nationwide have tested positive for coronavirus.
But many states, and the federal penitentiary system, have done only a small amount of testing. Five of the 50 states don't even report data.
Prisons occupied eight spaces on The New York Times' compilation of the top 10 infected institutions, with the Marion Correctional Institution at the top.
The reasons are clear: prison populations are more dense and harder to separate than nursing homes and cruise ships, two institutions hit hardest by the disease.
Thay also operate at lower levels of hygiene, and a large number of inmates have preexisting conditions.
And, until now, they have been low priority for officials battling the pandemic.
- 'No option to close prisons' -
AFP / ROBYN BECKThe watchtower of Terminal Island federal prison near Los Angeles, where some 60 percent of the inmate population has tested positive for COVID-19
Numbers released this past week show the depth of the problem.
The federal Bureau of Prisons, which has 152,000 inmates and 36,000 staff, found outbreaks in more than half of its 122 facilities.
Less than 3,000 tests have been administered, however, with 1,842 prisoners and 343 staff testing positive, and 36 inmate deaths.
On Thursday alone the bureau reported three deaths at the low security Terminal Island prison near Los Angeles, where some 60 percent of the roughly 1,050 inmate population has registered positive.
Bureau of Prisons Director Michael Carvajal complained of a shortage of testing supplies, and said that quarantining remains difficult.
"We don't have the option to close our doors, or pick who or when someone is sent to our custody," he said on Wednesday.
- 'It's hell' -
The situation is even less clear in state prisons, which have the bulk of the country's inmate population.
Some states like Ohio are now moving quickly with testing and are releasing data. Others are doing little.
One indicator of the potential extent: CoreCivic, a private company which operates dozens of prisons nationwide, tested all the 2,725 inmates and staff at its Trousdale Turner facility in Tennessee, and found 1,299 inmates and 50 staff positive, nearly all without symptoms.
Prison advocacy groups say that little has been done at the state and federal level to release prisoners who are non-violent or whose terms were near completion, which could lessen their danger of infection and create more space in the facilities.
Out of more than 10,000 in Kansas prisons, "Only six inmates have been released. Six," said public defender Heather Cessna.
Brian Miller, an officer at the Marion prison, warned this week that the situation would only worsen.
Miller -- struggling to speak as he recovers from his own coronavirus bout -- told a conference call that, with so many out sick, they do not have enough staff to clean the facility and manage the inmates.
The prisons are only offering hazard pay of an extra $1.85 an hours -- "less than Starbucks," he noted.
"Things are beyond breaking point at this facility," he said. "Right now it's hell."
Brazil's Salgado leads stars in Amazon COVID-19 appeal to president
AFP/File / Sergio LIMA"The indigenous peoples of Brazil face a serious threat to their own survival with the emergence of the COVID-19 pandemic," read the open letter signed by celebrities and sent to President Jair Bolsonaro
Brazilian photojournalist Sebastiao Salgado has sent an open letter to far-right President Jair Bolsonaro -- signed by celebrities like Brad Pitt and Madonna -- calling for "urgent measures" to save the indigenous peoples of the Amazon from the coronavirus pandemic.
"The indigenous peoples of Brazil face a serious threat to their own survival with the emergence of the COVID-19 pandemic," said the letter, backed by an online petition which has so far gathered around 50,000 signatures.
The 76-year-old photographer has won numerous international awards for his portrayal of the poor across the world, most recently turning his focus on the peoples of the Amazon rainforest basin.
AFP/File / INA FASSBENDERSebastiao Salgado, 76, has won numerous international awards for his photographs of the poor across the world, most recently turning his focus on the peoples of the Amazon
"Five centuries ago, these ethnic groups were decimated by diseases brought by European colonizers," said the letter, signed by a list of celebrities including Paul McCartney, Richard Gere and Meryl Streep.
"Today with this new scourge spreading rapidly throughout Brazil," the Amazon's indigenous people "may disappear completely since they have no means of combating COVID-19."
The stars appear in a video by Brazilian director Fernando Meireles, which features Salgado calling on Bolsonaro to put an end to economic intrusion into the lives of the Amazon peoples, and to "guarantee their protection."
AFP/File / Sergio LIMABrazilian Amazon rainforest tribal leaders held a protest demanding the demarcation of indigenous lands in Brasilia in March 2020
MINI ME TRUMPS TRUMP
AFP / EVARISTO SABrazilian President Jair Bolsonaro and his daughter Laura (C) pose for a selfie with supporters outside his residence in Brasilia on Sunday
AFP / EVARISTO SASupporters of Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro gather outside Planalto Palace in Brasilia, on May 3, 2020
AFP / EVARISTO SABrazil, the worst-hit country in South America, registered more than 100,000 infections from the coronavirus by Sunday, with more than 7,000 deaths
Bolsonaro tells rally Brazil lockdown destroying jobs
AFP / EVARISTO SABrazilian President Jair Bolsonaro and his daughter Laura (C) pose for a selfie with supporters outside his residence in Brasilia on Sunday
Brazil's President Jair Bolsonaro railed against the country's lockdown Sunday in a speech to thousands of anti-confinement demonstrators as the number of confirmed COVID-19 infections passed 100,000, with more than 7,000 deaths.
Bolsonaro blamed state governors for continuing the lockdown in a speech outside his presidential palace in Brasilia.
"The destruction of jobs by some governors is irresponsible and unacceptable. We will pay a high price in the future," the head of state said in a speech broadcast live on Facebook.
Bolsonaro has repeatedly clashed with state governors, insisting that strict containment measures they are imposing are an overreaction, and damaging to the economy.
AFP / EVARISTO SASupporters of Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro gather outside Planalto Palace in Brasilia, on May 3, 2020
The country registered 101,147 confirmed cases of the virus by Sunday, according to figures released by the Brazilian health ministry, with 275 deaths from COVID-19 within the previous 24 hours.
Experts believe the overall number of COVID-19 cases could be 12 to 15 times higher, due to a large number of undetected cases given the lack of testing availability across the country's 210 million population.
The demonstration in Brasilia drew a larger crowd than similar protests in recent weeks, and many people held up banners criticising Bolsonaro critics Rodrigo Maia, head of the chamber of deputies, and former justice minister Sergio Moro who resigned last week. Others in the crowd called on the army to intervene.
"The people are with us and the army is on the side of the law, order, freedom and democracy," Bolsonaro told them.
AFP / EVARISTO SABrazil, the worst-hit country in South America, registered more than 100,000 infections from the coronavirus by Sunday, with more than 7,000 deaths
The Estado de Sao Paulo daily, one of the country's biggest newspapers, reported on its website that one of its photographers and his driver were attacked by demonstrators, who pushed and kicked them.
Contrary to recent demonstrations in which he made an appearance, the far-right president -- who did not wear a mask -- maintained a distance of around two meters (six feet) from his nearest supporters after his address outside the presidential palace.
However, he made an exception for supporters who joined him for a selfie with his nine-year-old daughter Laura.
Experts are bracing for the biggest outbreak in South America to get far worse, as the peak of the pandemic is thought to be some weeks away.
Last week, Rio de Janeiro state said it would extend stay-at-home orders until May 11, ignoring Bolsonaro's demands that local and state authorities encourage Brazilians to get back to work.
TRUMP WANTS TO SEIZE REMDESIVIR FOR US USE ONLY (THERE IS NO US IN TRUMP)
Gilead Sciences exporting remdesivir, CEO says
AFP/File / JIM WATSONDaniel O'Day, CEO of Gillead Sciences Inc.
Gilead Sciences exporting remdesivir, CEO says
AFP/File / JIM WATSONDaniel O'Day, CEO of Gillead Sciences Inc.
The head of the maker of remdesivir, an anti-viral shown to reduce recovery times in COVID-19 patients, said Sunday the company has been exporting the drug and is making it available to patients in the United States through the US government.
Gilead Sciences CEO Daniel O'Day said the company is donating its entire existing supply of the drug -- 1.5 million vials, enough to treat 100,000 to 200,000 patients.
"We have been exporting for clinical trials and for compassionate use thousands of treatment courses," O'Day said on CBS's "Face the Nation."
"And our collaboration with the government has been such, we have been very transparent with them here in the United States and we have a good relationship on future allocation."
US regulators on Friday authorized the experimental drug for emergency use against COVID-19 after a major clinical trial showed it shortened the time to recovery in some coronavirus patients by a third.
It is the first medicine to show beneficial results in treating COVID-19 since the new coronavirus emerged in China late last year.
O'Day said the US government will determine how the drug is allocated in the United States based on where it is needed most.
"They will begin shipping tens of thousands of treatment courses out early this week and adjust that as the epidemic shifts and evolves in different parts and different cities here in the United States," he said.
O'Day said there will be a significantly greater supply of remdesivir in the second half of the year.
In the meantime, the company has not been barred from exporting the drug, he said.
"In terms of the allocation question, I think we're aligned with the US government to both serve the patients here in the United States, and then to be able to also make sure as a global company based in the United States that we can serve other countries," he said.
"We've had very good dialogues with the government and that's going well."
Remdesivir, which is administered by injection, was already available to some patients who enrolled in clinical trials, or who sought it out on a "compassionate use" basis.
The authorization by the federal Food and Drug Administration allows it to be distributed far more widely and used in both adults and children who are hospitalized with a severe form of COVID-19.
The FDA defines severe as having low blood oxygen levels, requiring oxygen therapy, or being on a ventilator.
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