HHS open letter on COVID-19 therapeutics transition

As it works to transition the COVID-19 oral antiviral treatments from government distribution to traditional health care distribution channels, US Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Xavier Becerra on Friday issued a request a request on the agency’s website for ongoing partnership during and after this transition.

The COVID-19 response remains a significant public health priority for the Biden-Harris Administration. People are still at risk of infection and re-infection, and millions are experiencing the longer-term effects of the virus, he noted. Recent studies suggest that oral antiviral treatments can reduce deaths and hospitalizations from COVID-19 by as much as 10-fold for people at high risk for progression to severe disease.

These treatments include Pfizer’s (NYSE: PFE) Paxlovid (nirmatrelvir co-packaged with ritonavir), a product that is FDA approved for the treatment of mild-to-moderate COVID-19 in adults who are at high-risk for progression to severe COVID-19, and Merck & Co’s (NYSE: MRK) Lagevrio (molnupiravir), a product that is available under Emergency Use Authorization.