Posted on 11/04/2021 8:29:52 PM PDT by SeekAndFind
Britain authorized the world’s first antiviral pill to treat the coronavirus, which may cut the risk of hospitalization and death from COVID-19 in half among the unvaccinated.
Britain on Thursday granted conditional authorization to drugmaker Merck's COVID-19 antiviral pill, becoming the first country in the world to OK the virus treatment.
The drug, developed by U.S.-based Merck and Ridgeback Biotherapeutics, is the first pill to gain regulatory approval to treat the coronavirus, aimed at alleviating mild-to-moderate COVID-19 in at-risk adults. It's intended to be taken twice per day for five days.
The authorization comes after the drug garnered positive results in its third phase of clinical trials, says Merck, which evaluated the pill in unvaccinated adults with mild-to-moderate COVID-19 who had at least one risk factor associated with poor health outcomes, such as obesity or heart disease. Last month, Merck reported that the drug, called molnupiravir, cut the risk of hospitalization and death from COVID-19 in half.
"As an oral therapeutic, molnupiravir offers an important addition to the vaccines and medicines deployed so far to counter the COVID-19 pandemic," Executive Vice President and President of Merck Research Laboratories Dr. Dean Y. Li said in a press release.
Merck announced last month that it had applied to the Food and Drug Administration for emergency use authorization for its antiviral pill. Pending FDA approval, the U.S. government has agreed to buy about 1.7 million courses of the drug for approximately $1.2 billion.
Last week, Merck agreed to let other drug makers produce its pill in a move that will likely help millions of people gain access to the treatment globally.
From THE ECONOMIST:
[ EXCERPT ]
Thor, the Norse thunder-god, was reputed to carry a hammer known as Mjollnir—a tool for destroying enemies and blessing friends. The hammer has provided suitable inspiration for the name of a powerful new drug to fight covid-19: molnupiravir. That drug has just been approved by Britain’s national medicines regulatory agency—the first in the world to do so. Molnupiravir, made by Merck, a big pharma firm, and a Florida-based biotech called Ridgeback Biotherapeutics, is the first oral antiviral medicine available to treat covid-19. The approval marks another milestone in the world’s fight against covid-19.
Other countries are also working quickly to approve the new medicine, which has provoked keen interest. Last month the interim results of a trial found that patients with a risk factor for covid-19 were 50% less likely to be hospitalised or die if the oral antibiotic was taken in the first five days after symptoms. Britain has secured 480,000 courses of molnupiravir, and sales of the drug are already brisk. America, Australia, Britain, the Philippines, Indonesia, Japan, New Zealand, Malaysia, Thailand and Vietnam are some of the countries that have secured deals, or are in the process of doing so.
Demand is likely to be very high. The drug will be used to treat patients who have not been vaccinated, or who remain at high risk despite having had a jab. Doctors now have a medicine to offer those most at risk from covid, which patients can take at home. The drug is also expected to be affordable globally. It is expected that rich countries will pay $700 a course for the drug, but low-income ones will pay something closer to $20—and maybe less as time goes on.
Nobody saw IverMercktin coming.
All this over a virus that has over 99% survival rate. It's amazing how hysteria spreads and grows, especially with all the MSM pundits and politicians crying croc tears.
I haven't had ANY jabs and I won't. If that means I can't enter a certain business or facility, so be it. There is always Amazon (hate Bezos), DoorDash, UberEats, Brizly for booze, and now many small businesses deliver. Let those who don't have cost effective delivery just die. There is a new business model out there.
Just spray your packages with Lysol before you bring them inside and all is good.
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