Merck claims pandemic breakthrough: Covid-19 pill reduces hospitalization and death by 50%
An antiviral pill reduced the chance that a newly diagnosed Covid-19 patient would be hospitalized or die by 50%, Merck announced Friday, potentially delivering — after 21 months — one of the most elusive medical breakthroughs of the pandemic.
If cleared by the FDA, the drug, known as molnupiravir, would be the first pill authorized to treat Covid-19. Such a drug would give doctors an easily administered tool to keep newly diagnosed patients, particularly high-risk ones, from developing severe disease.
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