The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has authorised Pfizer's Covid pill for high-risk people aged 12 and over, calling it an important milestone in the pandemic that will allow millions to access the treatment.
Paxlovid is a combination of two pills taken over five days that was shown in a clinical trial of 2,200 people to be safe and reduced the risk of hospitalisations and deaths among at-risk people by 88% when taken within five days of symptom onset. "Today's authorisation introduces the first treatment for Covid-19 that is in the form of a pill that is taken orally -- a major step forward in the fight against this global pandemic," said FDA scientist Patrizia Cavazzoni in a statement. "This breakthrough therapy, which has been