Coronavirus In Minnesota: Hennepin Healthcare Launches Clinical Trials On Remdesivir For Treating COVID-19

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MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) -- Hennepin Healthcare has launched two clinical trials for a drug to see if it will help COVID-19 patients.

The trials are being doing through the Hennepin Healthcare Research Institute.

Researchers are studying the safety and efficacy of the drug remdesivir to treat hospitalized patients with moderate or severe cases of COVID-19. It's an antiviral drug previously tested in Ebola patients.

Around 1,000 patients around the world will be in the trial. About 70 of them could be through Hennepin Healthcare.

"The clinical trials will help to determine if remdesivir is a safe and effective drug that can improve outcomes for patients diagnosed with COVID-19 here at Hennepin Healthcare and in the broader community," principal investigator Dr. Jason Baker said.