FDA authorizes second COVID antiviral pill, from Merck, if no alternatives available
CBSN
The Food and Drug Administration announced Thursday it had authorized molnupiravir, a drug produced by Merck and Ridgeback Biotherapeutics, to treat some American adults with COVID-19 who are at risk of severe disease when no other options are available. The pills are meant to be started within five days of developing the first symptoms.
"Molnupiravir is limited to situations where other FDA-authorized treatments for COVID-19 are inaccessible or are not clinically appropriate and will be a useful treatment option for some patients with COVID-19 at high risk of hospitalization or death," said the FDA's Dr. Patrizia Cavazzoni.
The agency's move marks the second emergency authorization for an antiviral pill to treat COVID-19 in as many days, after the FDA greenlighted Pfizer's Paxlovid on Wednesday. It comes ahead of a feared surge that could overwhelm hospitals as the Omicron variant rapidly spreads.
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