Coronavirus Watch: A second COVID pill gets FDA's OK
Ryan W. MillerA day after authorizing the first antiviral pill to treat COVID-19, the Food and Drug Administration on Thursday authorized a second: Merck’s molnupiravir.
Both prescription medications can be taken at home and are designed to stop the progression of COVID-19 from mild to severe symptoms in people at high risk.
However, in data presented to an FDA advisory panel in late November, Merck’s drug was shown to prevent 30% of infections from progressing – far fewer than Pfizer’s antiviral Paxlovid, which reduced the risk of severe disease by nearly 90%. The FDA authorized Paxlovid for use in the United States on Wednesday.
Want to know more about these new antiviral pills? USA TODAY Patient Safety Enterprise Reporter Karen Weintraub explains how omicron is affecting COVID treatments here.
It's Thursday, and this is Coronavirus Watch from the USA TODAY Network. Here's more news to know:
- COVID-19 cases in the United States have increased about 36% in just the last week, a USA TODAY analysis of Johns Hopkins University data shows. The U.S. went from reporting about 120,000 cases a day to more than 160,000.
- The Supreme Court announced Wednesday that it will hear oral arguments in a number of challenges to President Joe Biden's COVID-19 vaccine-or-testing requirements for large employers and health care facilities.
- Two British studies added more evidence to the theory that omicron is milder than delta, showing a lower risk of hospitalization.
- The head of the World Health Organization, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, said Wednesday that "blanket booster programs are likely to prolong the pandemic rather than ending it."
Today's numbers: The U.S. has recorded more than 51.5 million confirmed COVID-19 cases and more than 812,000 deaths, according to Johns Hopkins University data. Global totals: More than 277.3 million cases and 5.3 million deaths. More than 204.8 million Americans – 61.7% – are fully vaccinated, according to the CDC.
Tracking the pandemic: See the numbers in your area here. See where cases are rising here. See vaccination rates here. And here, compare vaccinations rates worldwide and see which countries are using which vaccines.
– Ryan Miller, USA TODAY Breaking News Reporter, @RyanW_Miller