Enlarge / A vial of Remdesivir during a press conference about the start of a study with severely COVID-19 patients in Hamburg, Germany on April 8, 2020. (credit: Getty | Ulrich Perrey) The US Food and Drug Administration on Thursday issued a full approval of the antiviral drug remdesivir for treating COVID-19—just days after a massive global study concluded that the drug provides no benefit. “The FDA is committed to expediting the development and availability of COVID-19 treatments during this unprecedented public health emergency,” FDA Commissioner Stephen Hahn said in a statement.