Millions more cutting-edge antiviral treatments for COVID-19 have
been secured for NHS patients as the UK government signs 2 new
contracts to help tackle Omicron.
The significant new deals have been accelerated following the
emergence of the Omicron variant to protect vulnerable people
over the coming months. The move will help reduce
hospitalisations and ease pressures on the NHS.
Antivirals are treatments used to either treat those who are
infected with a virus or sometimes protect exposed individuals
from becoming infected. They target the virus at an early stage,
preventing progression to more severe, or even critical,
symptoms.
The 2 new contracts are for 1.75 million additional courses of
Merck Sharp and Dohme’s (MSD) molnupiravir (Lagevrio®) and 2.5
million additional courses of PF-07321332/ritonavir (Paxlovid™)
from Pfizer which will be available from early next year and are
both expected to be effective against Omicron.
The 4.25 million courses are in addition to the procurement of
480,000 courses of molnupiravir and 250,000 courses of
PF-07321332/ritonavir announced in October this year.
Health and Social Care Secretary said:
Our COVID-19 booster programme continues at unparalleled pace and
it’s vital we further bolster our national response to the virus
by ensuring access to the world’s best treatments too.
This is a mammoth deal for the UK government and for patients
across the country that are set to benefit from these antivirals
over the coming months.
If you’re aged 50 and over or have an underlying health condition
and test positive for COVID-19, sign up to the study as soon as
you can and take advantage of this remarkable treatment.
Molnupiravir is already being rolled out to hundreds of patients
through the national study PANORAMIC, run by the University of
Oxford in close collaboration with GP hubs. The government is
urging everyone aged 50 and over, or between 18 to 49 with an
underlying health condition, to sign up to the trial if
they test positive for COVID-19.
Last week, deployment of the antiviral to those at highest risk
began outside of the clinical trial – for example, people who are
immunocompromised or cancer patients – after they’ve tested
positive. And as of Monday the antibody treatment sotrovimab
(Xevudy™) was also being made available to this group of
patients.
Molnupiravir has shown in clinical trials to reduce the risk of
hospitalisation or death for at-risk, non-hospitalised adults
with mild to moderate COVID-19 by 30%. PF-07321332/ritonavir
reduced the relative risk of COVID-19-associated hospitalisation
or death by 89% in those who received treatment within 3 days of
symptoms appearing.
Should PF-07321332 be approved by the Medicines and Healthcare
products Regulatory Agency (MHRA), it will also be deployed
through the PANORAMIC study as quickly as possible.
The study was launched to allow medical experts to gather further
data on the potential benefits these treatments bring to
vaccinated patients, and will help the NHS to develop plans for
rolling out the antivirals to further patients next year.
For treatment access outside of the study, those in the highest
risk group will be informed by the NHS if they have a condition
that will make them eligible to receive these treatments, should
they test positive for COVID-19.
Chair of the Antivirals Taskforce Eddie Gray said:
Both antivirals in our current portfolio could be vital tools
against Omicron, with current evidence showing they will be
effective against the variant.
The Antivirals Taskforce will continue its work to ensure
vulnerable people who test positive for COVID-19 can rapidly
access these medicines.
Signing up to the study is a simple and easy way you can protect
yourself once you contract COVID-19. If eligible, please sign up
as soon as you test positive.
The Antivirals Taskforce will continue to look at a number of
further treatment options, spanning a range of different
antiviral mechanisms. Alongside the work of the Therapeutics
Taskforce, this will ensure as many people as possible can be
protected from COVID-19, future variants and other future
diseases.
Since the beginning of the pandemic, the UK has proven itself to
be a world leader in identifying and rolling out effective
treatments for COVID-19, including the world’s first treatment,
dexamethasone, which has saved over a million lives worldwide.
