The pharmaceutical giant which made the Covid-19 vaccine last year claims that its pill was able to stave off severe disease in a clinical trial and may be effective against the new omicron variant of the coronavirus
A photo provided by Pfizer, shows Paxlovid, Pfizer’s COVID treatment pill, being produced in a laboratory in Freiburg, Germany. A highly anticipated study of Pfizer’s COVID pill confirmed that it helps stave off severe disease, the company announced on Tuesday, Dec. 14, 2021. Pfizer also said its antiviral pill worked in laboratory studies against the Omicron variant of the coronavirus. (Pfizer via The New York Times)
Pfizer announced Tuesday that its COVID-19 pill was found to stave off severe disease in a key clinical trial and that it is likely to work against the highly mutated omicron variant of the virus. The results underscore the promise of the treatment, which health officials and doctors are counting on, to ease the burden on hospitals as the United States braces for a mounting fourth wave of the pandemic.
If the Food and Drug Administration authorizes the drug, which could happen within days, then patients might begin receiving it by the end of the year. Although supply will be limited at first, public health experts are hopeful that the pills might curb the worst outcomes from the disease, no matter the variant.
©2019 New York Times News Service