I’ve heard that the sooner the better for administering the drugs.
The problem is, government run healthcare is delaying it in many cases until; the patients are far too sick. Once the lungs are damaged past a certain point, nothing short of a lung transplant will help.
The drug may kill the virus but the damage is what kills the person.
Sadly, the practice is sending people home and not admitting them until they are in respiratory distress. By then, it’s nearly too late.