A panel of expert advisors to the US Food and Drug Administration narrowly decided on Tuesday to recommend that the agency approve Merck & Co’s (MRK.N) antiviral tablet for the treatment of COVID-19. If approved by the FDA, the medicine would be the first at-home therapy for the virus over two years after the epidemic began. The permission would most likely be limited to individuals who are at high risk of acquiring serious illness, though the precise group would be determined by the FDA.
COVID-19 is still an emergency scenario, stressed yes voting committee member Dr. David Hardy. Something like this is really needed. This is the first time an oral outpatient treatment for slightly to moderately symptomatic people would be accessible, albeit he has concerns about its general long-term effectiveness, he further added. The vote comes as financial markets are shaken by fears over the new Omicron variety, raising questions about the robustness of the global economic recovery as the globe fights the coronavirus epidemic.
Merck’s oral medication molnupiravir, developed in collaboration with Ridgeback Biotherapeutics, targets a component of the virus called the RNA polymerase, which has not been significantly altered by mutations in the Omicron variety. If the variation threatens vaccine-induced and natural immunity, the pill – and a possibly more promising medicine being researched by Pfizer – might become even more important. Earlier last month, the United Kingdom granted conditional approval to molnupiravir, marketed as Lagevrio.
People with poor oral health can end up with more severe symptoms if they catch the coronavirus
Merck anticipates producing 10 million courses of therapy by the end of this year, with at least 20 million produced by 2022. The United States government has a deal to purchase up to 5 million courses of medicine at a cost of $700 each course. In comparison, the United States paid around $20 per dosage for its supply of the two-dose Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine.
