Tag Archives: pharma

The Associated Press reports: U.S. health regulators on Wednesday authorized the first pill against COVID-19, a Pfizer drug that Americans will be able to take at home to head off the worst effects of the virus. The drug, Paxlovid, is a faster, cheaper way to treat early COVID-19 infections, though initial supplies will be extremely limited. All of the previously …

Via press release from the FDA: Today, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved Apretude (cabotegravir extended-release injectable suspension) for use in at-risk adults and adolescents weighing at least 35 kilograms (77 pounds) for pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) to reduce the risk of sexually acquired HIV. Apretude is given first as two initiation injections administered one month apart, and then every …

NBC News reports: Additional data from Pfizer’s clinical trial of its oral Covid-19 antiviral drug confirm the treatment’s high level of effectiveness, the company said in a news release Tuesday. In the final analysis of its Phase 2/3 clinical trial, the antiviral, called Paxlovid, was found to be 89 percent effective at preventing high-risk people from being hospitalized or dying …

The Associated Press reports:  One year ago, the biggest vaccination drive in American history began with a flush of excitement in an otherwise gloomy December. Trucks loaded with freezer-packed vials of a COVID-19 vaccine that had proved wildly successful in clinical trials fanned out across the land, bringing shots that many hoped would spell the end of the crisis. The …

NBC News reports: A company once owned by “Pharma Bro” Martin Shkreli will pay up to $40 million to settle allegations that it jacked up the price of a life-saving medication by roughly 4,000% after obtaining exclusive rights to the drug, the Federal Trade Commission announced Tuesday. The FTC said Vyera Pharmaceuticals LLC and its parent company, Phoenixus AG, agreed …

Science Alert reports: Usage of the medication sildenafil – better known to most as the brand-name drug Viagra – is associated with dramatically reduced incidence of Alzheimer’s disease, new research suggests. According to a study led by researchers at the Cleveland Clinic, taking sildenafil is tied to a nearly 70 percent lower risk of developing Alzheimer’s compared to non-users. That’s …

USA Today reports: A new study found that the Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine serves as an effective booster on top of full vaccination from the Pfizer vaccine. A J&J booster, administered six months after two doses of the Pfizer vaccine, increased antibody and T-cell responses, according to the study, demonstrating potential benefits of mix-and-match boosters. “There is early evidence …

NBC News reports: A Food and Drug Administration advisory panel voted Tuesday to recommend Merck’s experimental antiviral pill to treat Covid-19 for emergency use authorization, paving the way for the agency to clear the first oral drug for the disease. Members of the agency’s Antimicrobial Drugs Advisory Committee voted 13-10 in favor of the treatment, called molnupiravir, for use in …

CNBC reports: CVS Health said Thursday that it will close about 900 stores over the next three years, as it adjusts to shoppers who are buying more online. The company announced in a news release that it will focus more of its efforts on digital growth and turning its stores into destinations that offer a range of health-care services, from …

Reuters reports: Pfizer Inc has signed a $5.29 billion deal with the U.S. government to deliver 10 million courses of its COVID-19 oral antiviral drug starting this year, the drugmaker said on Thursday. Pfizer on Tuesday filed for U.S. authorization of the drug, Paxlovid, and said it expects to manufacture 180,000 treatment courses by the end of next month and …

The Washington Post reports: Drugmaker Pfizer Inc. has signed a deal with a U.N.-backed group to allow other manufacturers to make its experimental COVID-19 pill, a move that could make the treatment available to more than half of the world’s population. In a statement issued Tuesday, Pfizer said it would grant a license for the antiviral pill to the Geneva-based …

Reuters reports: The U.S. government will buy another $1 billion worth of the COVID-19 pill made by Merck & Co Inc and partner Ridgeback Biotherapeutics, the companies said on Tuesday. The government in June agreed to buy 1.7 million courses of molnupiravir for $1.2 billion and is now exercising options to buy 1.4 million more. That brings the total secured …

CNBC reports: Pfizer said Friday that its easy-to-administer Covid-19 pill, used in combination with a widely used HIV drug, cut the risk of hospitalization or death by 89% in high-risk adults who’ve been exposed to the virus. It’s now the second antiviral pill behind Merck’s to demonstrate strong effectiveness for treating Covid at the first sign of illness. If cleared …

The Hill reports: Democratic lawmakers have reached a deal on legislation to lower prescription drug prices to be included in President Biden’s social spending package, Senate Majority Leader Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) announced Tuesday. The agreement is less far-reaching than earlier Democratic proposals, but still represents progress on an issue the party has campaigned on for years. The agreement would allow …

NPR reports: U.S.-based pharmaceutical giant Merck & Co. said it will license drugmakers worldwide to produce its potentially lifesaving antiviral pill for treatment of COVID-19 in adults. The drug, known as molnupiravir, has shown promise in treating the disease, and the agreement to license its production could help millions of people in the developing world gain access to it. Merck …

The New York Times reports: A key advisory committee to the Food and Drug Administration voted overwhelmingly to recommend the use of Pfizer-BioNTech’s coronavirus vaccine in 5- to 11-year-olds, bringing the vaccine a big step closer to about 28 million children. Shots could be offered as early as next week. The panel endorsed giving the age group one-third of the …

NPR reports: Moderna says a study in kids 6 to 11 found two doses of the company’s COVID-19 vaccine given 28 days apart produced a strong antibody response. The study, conducted in collaboration with the National Institutes of Health, used shots containing a 50 microgram dose of the vaccine, half the dose of the Moderna shots authorized for adults. More …

ABC News reports: Kid-size doses of Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine appear safe and nearly 91% effective at preventing symptomatic infections in 5- to 11-year-olds, according to study details released Friday as the U.S. considers opening vaccinations to that age group. The shots could begin in early November — with the first children in line fully protected by Christmas — if regulators …

Bloomberg News reports: Merck & Co. and its partner Ridgeback Biotherapeutics LP sought emergency use authorization in the U.S. for molnupiravir, moving the pill closer to becoming the first oral antiviral treatment for Covid-19. An application was submitted with the Food and Drug Administration for molnupiravir to treat mild-to-moderate Covid-19 in adults at risk of developing a severe illness that …

CNBC reports: Merck and Ridgeback Biotherapeutics plan to seek emergency authorization for their oral antiviral treatment for Covid-19, after the medicine showed “compelling results” in clinical trials. The drug, molnupiravir, reduced the risk of hospitalization or death by around 50% for patients with mild or moderate cases of Covid-19, the companies announced on Friday. Molnupiravir is administered orally and works …