FDA Authorizes Pfizer’s COVID-19 Pill Weeks After Landing $5 Billion Deal With Biden Administration

FDA Authorizes Pfizer’s COVID-19 Pill Weeks After Landing $5 Billion Deal With Biden Administration
Paxlovid, a Pfizer COVID-19 pill, is seen manufactured in Ascoli, Italy, in this undated photo obtained by Reuters on Nov. 16, 2021. Pfizer/Handout via Reuters
Jack Phillips
Updated:

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on Dec. 22 granted emergency use authorization to Pfizer’s COVID-19 treatment pill—coming about a month after the federal government announced it would purchase 10 million courses of the drug.

The pill, Paxlovid, is taken twice per day for five days in combination with a second medicine called ritonavir, classified as a generic antiviral drug. The drug is aimed to help patients who are suffering from “mild-to-moderate” COVID-19 symptoms from becoming so sick that they need to be hospitalized, officials and Pfizer have said.

Jack Phillips
Jack Phillips
Breaking News Reporter
Jack Phillips is a breaking news reporter who covers a range of topics, including politics, U.S., and health news. A father of two, Jack grew up in California's Central Valley. Follow him on X: https://twitter.com/jackphillips5
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