A drug treatment called remdesivir that appears to shorten recovery time for people with coronavirus is being made available on the NHS.
Health Secretary Matt Hancock said it was probably the biggest step forward in the treatment of coronavirus since the crisis began.
Remdesivir is an anti-viral medicine that has been used against Ebola.
UK regulators say there is enough evidence to approve its use in selected Covid-19 hospital patients.
For the time being and due to limited supplies, it will go to those most likely to benefit.
The US and Japan have already made similar urgent arrangements to provide early access to the medicine before they have a marketing agreement.
The drug is currently undergoing clinical trials around the world, including in the UK.
Early data suggests it can cut recovery time by about four days, but there is no evidence yet that it will save more lives.
