pfizer – The Philadelphia Observer https://philadelphiaobserver.com Just another WordPress site Sat, 06 Nov 2021 16:03:31 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.7.1 Pfizer says COVID-19 pill cut hospital, death risk by 90% https://philadelphiaobserver.com/pfizer-says-covid-19-pill-cut-hospital-death-risk-by-90/ Sat, 06 Nov 2021 16:03:29 +0000 http://philadelphiaobserver.com/?p=3034 Pfizer to ask the FDA, international regulators for authorization of use

Pfizer Inc. said Friday that its experimental antiviral pill for COVID-19 cut rates of hospitalization and death by nearly 90% in high-risk adults, as the drugmaker joined the race for an easy-to-use medication to treat the coronavirus.

Currently most COVID-19 treatments require an IV or injection. Competitor Merck’s COVID-19 pill is already under review at the Food and Drug Administration after showing strong initial results, and on Thursday the United Kingdom became the first country to OK it.

A moment in time somewhere on the Bowery

Pfizer said it will ask the FDA and international regulators to authorize its pill as soon as possible, after independent experts recommended halting the company’s study based on the strength of its results. Once Pfizer applies, the FDA could make a decision within weeks or months.

A Pfizer sign hangs on the outside of their headquarters after a news conference discussing the planned merger of Pfizer and Wyeth January 26, 2009 in New York City. (Photo by Mario Tama/Getty Images)

Since the beginning of the pandemic last year, researchers worldwide have been racing to find a pill to treat COVID-19 that can be taken at home to ease symptoms, speed recovery and keep people out of the hospital.

Having pills to treat early COVID-19 “would be a very important advance,” said Dr. John Mellors, chief of infectious diseases at the University of Pittsburgh, who was not involved in the Pfizer study.

Source: Pfizer says COVID-19 pill cut hospital, death risk by 90%

]]> Fauci asks Americans to prepare to get vaccinated as states plan for distribution https://philadelphiaobserver.com/fauci-asks-americans-to-prepare-to-get-vaccinated-as-states-plan-for-distribution/ Tue, 08 Dec 2020 01:19:39 +0000 http://philadelphiaobserver.com/?p=1785

 

(CNN)As the US prepares for the first round of vaccinations to tackle Covid-19, infectious disease expert Dr. Anthony Fauci called on the public to “be part of the solution” and get vaccinated once it is available.

“Say, ‘I’m not going to be one of the people that’s going to be a steppingstone for the virus to go to somebody else. I’m going to be a dead end to the virus,’” Fauci told Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg Monday.
 
The virus has been spreading quickly, and November set records 20 times for the number of coronavirus hospitalizations, according to the Covid Tracking Project, the most recent Monday with 96,039. All the while Johns Hopkins University data reports that the US has reached more than 13.5 million total cases and 268,045 deaths. And the impacts of Thanksgiving travel still won’t be felt for weeks, health experts say.
 
 
 
When can I get a coronavirus vaccine?
Holiday gatherings — like Thanksgiving and upcoming Christmas and Hanukkah — are the “perfect setup” for people who have no symptoms to “innocently and inadvertently” spread infections to their loved ones.
 
With that in mind, officials are preparing for the first wave of vaccine distributions.
 
Vaccine candidates from Pfizer and Moderna are both awaiting emergency use authorizations (EUA). States have until Friday to request the number of doses for Pfizer’s vaccine, Executive Director of the Association of Immunization Managers Claire Hannan told CNN Monday.
 
Once the US Food and Drug Administration grants EUAs and the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention makes recommendations on which groups will get the vaccines first, they will be ready to be shipped out, Dr. Moncef Slaoui, Operation Warp Speed chief scientific adviser, said Monday. And that very day or the next, the first immunizations can be administered, he said.

Source: Fauci asks Americans to prepare to get vaccinated as states plan for distribution

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