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US regulator set to authorise Pfizer and Merck Covid-19 pills this week

The two drugs are seen as promising new oral treatments to help prevent hospitalisations

Pfizer’s Paxlovid showed near 90% efficacy in preventing hospitalisations and deaths in high-risk patients

Tue Dec 21 2021 - 20:36

The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is set to authorise Covid-19 treatment pills from both Pfizer and Merck as early as Wednesday, Bloomberg News reported on Tuesday, citing people familiar with the matter.

The two drugs, especially Pfizer’s pill Paxlovid, are seen as promising new oral treatments that can be taken upon onset of symptoms at home to help prevent Covid-19 hospitalisations and deaths.

Merck’s drug, molnupiravir, developed with Ridgeback Biotherapeutics, was shown to reduce hospitalisations and deaths by around 30 per cent in a clinical trial of high-risk individuals early in the course of the illness.

Molnupiravir gained a narrow vote in favour of authorisation by a panel of advisers to the FDA on November 30th.

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Meanwhile, Pfizer’s Paxlovid showed near 90 per cent efficacy in preventing hospitalisations and deaths in high-risk patients.

The FDA did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Britain in November became the first country in the world to approve Merck’s antiviral drug for use in people with mild to moderate Covid-19 and for those who have at least one risk factor for developing severe illness.

The US has a contract to buy as many as 5 million courses of Merck’s drug, and 10 million courses of Pfizer’s treatment. – Reuters

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