Administering remdesivir to eligible patients during a wave of COVID-19 infections may help reduce costs, according to a retrospective analysis of data from the first wave of COVID-19 in a tertiary-care hospital in Germany.

The studyFootnote 1, published in Infection, retrospectively reviewed medical charts of patients with COVID-19 treated at University Hospital Cologne, Germany, during the first wave of COVID-19 infections. Eligible patients were clustered using an eight-category ordinal scale to reflect different levels of supplemental oxygen. Potential cost savings from administering remdesivir (according to European Medicines Agency label) were modelled using retrospective length-of-stay data from the Adaptive COVID-19 Treatment Trial. A healthcare payer perspective was taken, and costs (2020 values) included those for staff, material, and infrastructure; acquisition costs of remdesivir were not included in the analysis.

In total, 105 patients with COVID-19 were included in the study. There was a large range in resource consumption with median treatment costs from around €900 to €53 000 per patient, depending on diagnostic category and clinical severity. No supplemental oxygen was needed in 40 patients (38%); 43 patients (41%) were admitted to intensive-care units, and 30 (70%) received invasive ventilation. On-label administration of remdesivir would have reduced costs by €2100 per inpatient.