Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Pfizer's Covid Pill Nearly 90% Effective Against Severe Illness
Paxlovid, Pfizer’s pill to treat Covid-19, retained its 89% efficacy at preventing hospitalization and death in the full results of a study of 2,246 high-risk patients, the company said Tuesday. In early November, Pfizer had released interim results from the first 1,219 patients in the study. But another oral antiviral targeting Covid, from Merck and Ridgeback Biotherapeutics, had seen estimates of its efficacy at preventing hospitalization drop from 50% to 30% between an interim result and a final one. A panel of experts advising the Food and Drug Administration on Nov. 30 recommended 13-11 that the Merck pill, molnupiravir, should be authorized for emergency use. The FDA has not announced a decision. (Herper, 12/14)
The company also looked at the effect of the drug on suppressing the amount of virus in the body, the so-called viral load, and found it led to a tenfold drop compared with a placebo. A reduction in viral load could reduce people's infectiousness. (Hensley, 12/14)
Also —
President Biden said Tuesday his administration has ordered enough of Pfizer's COVID-19 antiviral pills to treat 10 million Americans, after the company reported the drug reduced the risk of hospitalization or death by 89% in high-risk adults. Oral antiviral drugs designed to prevent or treat COVID-19 could be key pandemic-fighting tools — something Biden noted in his announcement hours before the coronavirus death toll surpassed 800,000 in the U.S. (Falconer, 12/14)
