On May 7, 2020, Gilead announced that the Japanese Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare (MHLW) has granted regulatory approval of Veklury (remdesivir) as a treatment for SARS-CoV-2 infection, the virus that causes COVID-19, under an exceptional approval pathway. The exceptional approval was granted due to the COVID-19 pandemic and references the Emergency Use Authorization of remdesivir in the U.S.