The FDA Has Just Approved A Second Pill To Treat COVID-19

Things are finally looking up in the land of COVID!! The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has authorized Merck & Co’s antiviral pill for COVID-19.

Only a day ago, the FDA gave the go-ahead to a similar treatment from Pfizer (paxlovin), and this just might be the Christmas miracle we’ve been waiting for!!

This drug has been shown to reduce hospitalization and death by about 30% — which we will take, AMIRITE?!?

Merck’s drug, molnupiravir, is an oral antiviral drug used to treat mild to moderate COVID in adults.

It has been cleared to treat adults over the age of 18, who have tested positive for COVID-19, and are at a high risk for hospitalization or even death.

As new variants of the virus continue to emerge, it is crucial to expand the country’s arsenal of COVID-19 therapies using emergency use authorization, while continuing to generate additional data on their safety and effectiveness.
Dr. Patrizia Cavazzoni, director of the FDA’s Center for Drug Evaluation and Research

It is important to note that this drug is NOT a viable substitute for getting the COVID vaccine. It also isn’t to PREVENT the coronavirus. It is for those that have already been diagnosed.

Under the authorization for mulnupiravir, it is “limited to situations where other FDA-authorized treatments for COVID-19 are inaccessible or are not clinically appropriate and will be a useful treatment option for some patients with COVID-19 at high risk of hospitalization or death.”

It has not been approved for those UNDER the age of 18 because they are still experiencing bone and cartilage growth. This drug is capable of affecting that growth in a negative way.