FDA approves Merck’s at-home antiviral pill for COVID-19 treatment
Category: #headlines  | By Nikita Chaurasia  | Date: 2021-12-27 |
  • shareshare_icon
  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • LinkedIn

FDA approves Merck’s at-home antiviral pill for COVID-19 treatment

The U.S. FDA (Food and Drug Administration) has reportedly approved Merck's antiviral oral medicine for the treatment of COVID-19 among high-risk adult patients. The move comes immediately after the FDA gave a nod to similar treatment from Pfizer for high-risk patients aged 12 years and above.

In a clinical trial of high-risk individuals early in the course of the illness, Merck's medicine, molnupiravir, developed with Ridgeback Biotherapeutics, was shown to cut hospitalizations and deaths by roughly 30%. The decision to approve the drug came after a panel of FDA advisers narrowly voted in support of authorization on November 30.

As per credible sources, oral medication has been indicated for treating mild-to-moderate COVID-19 in adults who are at risk of severe disease and for whom COVID-19 therapies are unavailable or clinically not acceptable.

Both the Merck and Pfizer pills can act as potential tools for COVID-19 patients, particularly to treat the rapidly spreading Omicron variant, which is now dominant in the United States.

Patrizia Cavazzoni, Director of FDA’s Center for Drug Evaluation and Research, was reportedly quoted saying that it is necessary to add to the country's stockpile of COVID-19 medicines via emergency use authorization as new virus types arise.

However, Merck’s molnupiravir is not approved for use in patients under the age of 18 because it can disrupt bone and cartilage formation, claims the FDA.

According to trial results, Pfizer's antiviral regimen, Paxlovid, was approximately 90% effective in reducing hospitalizations and deaths in individuals at high risk of severe illness, which was significantly higher than the efficiency demonstrated by Merck’s drug. This disparity in efficiency rates could hurt Merck’s revenues in the upcoming period.

The U.S government has reportedly signed a contract with Pfizer for 10 million courses at USD 530 per course, while also having a deal with Merck for up to 5 million courses of molnupiravir at USD 700 per course.

Source Credits:

https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/international/world-news/u-s-fda-authorizes-mercks-at-home-antiviral-covid-19-pill/articleshow/88457835.cms

  • shareshare_icon
  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • LinkedIn


About Author

Nikita Chaurasia     twitter

Nikita Chaurasia

Having always been daft at wordplay, Nikita Chaurasia, post the completion of post-graduation, commenced her journey into the content generation cosmos. Endowed with a professional MBA degree in Advertising and Public Relations, Nikita strives to integrate her creativ...

Read More..

More News By Nikita Chaurasia

General Motors passes Ford to become the second-best EV seller in U.S.

General Motors passes Ford to become the second-best EV seller in U.S.

By Nikita Chaurasia

Detroit-based American multinational automaker, General Motors, has reportedly pulled ahead of fellow American rival, Ford Motor, to establish itself as second-biggest seller of all-electric vehicles in the US during the first quarter of 2023. The...

McKinsey commences job cuts focused on non-client serving teams

McKinsey commences job cuts focused on non-client serving teams

By Nikita Chaurasia

McKinsey and Co. a consulting giant entity has decided to start cutting jobs in one of the biggest rounds of layoffs for the company. This is likely to eliminate the jobs of about 2000 employees from work. The layoffs will be focused on support st...

Fintech firm PayPal to shed around 2000 staff as global economy plummets

Fintech firm PayPal to shed around 2000 staff as global economy plummets

By Nikita Chaurasia

PayPal, the U.S.-based fintech giant, has reportedly announced that it will cut nearly 2000 jobs, approximately 7% of its workforce, as it turns the latest prominent tech company to shed staff in a bid to cut costs. The online payments provider cl...