Manila Mayor Francisco "Isko Moreno" Domagoso has ordered the purchase of additional vials of remdesivir, a drug used to treat coronavirus disease (COVID-19) patients.
In a meeting with city officials Wednesday, several city health officials confirmed remdesivir's effectivity after more patients who took the medication reportedly recovered from COVID-19.
The city government earlier acquired 2,000 remdesivir vials, that were used to treat around 200 symptomatic COVID-19 patients. Studies showed that the drug reduced the length of illness from 15 to 11 days.
Additionally, Domagoso said they will purchase more medical equipment to beef up the city's medical sector amid its fight against the pandemic.
He also said that they will implement additional measures at the city’s six district hospitals to ensure the safety of frontline healthcare workers.
As of August 31, Manila has 8,110 confirmed COVID-19 cases with 6,911 recoveries, 325 deaths and 874 active cases.