In early 2020, we at Johnson & Johnson found ourselves with an unusual problem: There were too many orders for an antiviral drug used to treat people with HIV. The demand was coming not from HIV patients but from doctors on the front lines of the Covid-19 pandemic. Early media reports indicated that the drug might be effective against that disease, and orders for the medicine surged.
How Johnson & Johnson Made Hard Decisions During Covid
During a crisis, it’s sometimes hard to pause. There is a natural predisposition to act—to want to help, to jump in and do everything one can. But it’s important to remember that we may end up doing more harm than good if we act too quickly, without first pausing to consider the objective rigor of the data underpinning decision-making as well as the broader impact of the decisions we make. In early 2020, media reports indicated that an antiviral drug produced by Johnson & Johnson that was used to treat people with HIV might be effective against COVID-19. Orders for the medicine surged beyond what the pharmaceutical company could produce. Instead of ramping up production, though, the company paused and followed a specific playbook for responding to crisis. The company worked with internal and external independent experts, transparently laid out and shared the scientific data, and established and globally applied an ethical framework, all to ensure their decision-making process was rational, ethical and equitable. The benefits of this review process were born out months later when clinical studies on HIV antivirals in patients with COVID-19 showed that the drugs were not effective against COVID-19 in people. Acting hastily to fill the influx of orders early in the pandemic would not have helped patients with COVID-19. In addition, diverting the supply would have harmed those who needed the medicines for HIV.