Japan's health ministry has given green light on the use of the oral COVID-19 pill produced by Pfizer Inc. to increase treatment options for people with mild symptoms.
Health Minister Shigeyuki Goto said the availability of Pfizer’s Paxlovid pill gives high-risk patients, including elderly people and those with underlying health issues, greater treatment options.
The Pfizer pill, a combination of the antiviral drugs nirmatrelvir and ritonavir, is the second COVID-19 oral treatment Japan has approved, after Merck & Co.'s antiviral pill molnupiravir.
The approval comes as surging cases among elderly patients are starting to overwhelm hospitals in Tokyo and other metropolitan areas, and delayed booster vaccinations have reached only about 8 percent of the population.
Health Minister Shigeyuki Goto said the availability of Pfizer's Paxlovid pill gives high-risk patients, including elderly people and those with underlying health issues, greater treatment options.
Japan is counting on oral treatments to help reduce serious cases and deaths, and Kishida said the government has secured 2 million doses of Pfizer pills. Goto said distribution of the Pfizer pills will begin Monday.
Health Minister Shigeyuki Goto said the availability of Pfizer’s Paxlovid pill gives high-risk patients, including elderly people and those with underlying health issues, greater treatment options.
The Pfizer pill, a combination of the antiviral drugs nirmatrelvir and ritonavir, is the second COVID-19 oral treatment Japan has approved, after Merck & Co.'s antiviral pill molnupiravir.
The approval comes as surging cases among elderly patients are starting to overwhelm hospitals in Tokyo and other metropolitan areas, and delayed booster vaccinations have reached only about 8 percent of the population.
Health Minister Shigeyuki Goto said the availability of Pfizer's Paxlovid pill gives high-risk patients, including elderly people and those with underlying health issues, greater treatment options.
Japan is counting on oral treatments to help reduce serious cases and deaths, and Kishida said the government has secured 2 million doses of Pfizer pills. Goto said distribution of the Pfizer pills will begin Monday.
