U.S. health advisersare backing the continued use of Pfizer’s COVID-19 pill Paxlovid, saying it remains an important option for adults at high risk of severe illnessWASHINGTON -- Pfizer’s COVID-19 pill Paxlovid won another vote of confidence from U.S. health advisers Thursday, clearing the way for its full regulatory approval by the Food and Drug Administration. The agency has the final say on giving Pfizer's drug full approval and is expected to decide by May. The FDA said using Paxlovid in high-risk patients could prevent 1,500 COVID-19 deaths and 13,000 hospitalizations per week. Pfizer originally studied Paxlovid in the highest-risk COVID-19 patients: unvaccinated adults with other health problems and no evidence of prior coronavirus infection. The FDA reviewed Pfizer data showing Paxlovid made no meaningful difference in otherwise healthy adults, whether or not they’d been previously vaccinated.

Source: ABC News March 17, 2023 07:36 UTC