China gives conditional approval for Pfizer Covid pill, Paxlovid: drug regulator

(FILES) This file handout photo provided to AFP on November 16, 2021 courtesy of Pfizer shows the making of its experimental Covid-19 antiviral pills, Paxlovid, inside his laboratory in Freiburg, Germany. – Pfizer said on December 14, 2021, that clinical trials confirmed its anti-Covid pill reduced hospitalizations and deaths among at-risk people by almost 90 percent when it was taken in the first few days after symptoms appear. “This news provides further corroboration that our oral antiviral candidate, if authorized or approved, could have a meaningful impact on the lives of many, Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla said in a statement, saying the new drug, called Paxlovid, could “save lives.” (Photo by Handout / Pfizer / AFP)

 

 

BEIJING, China (AFP) — China on Saturday said it had given “conditional” approval for Pfizer’s Covid-19 drug Paxlovid to treat adults with mild to moderate illness and a high risk of developing severe disease.

The National Medical Products Administration said further research on the drug needed to be undertaken and submitted to the regulator.

Paxlovid has so far been authorized in several countries including the United States and Israel, while the European Union has permitted member states to use it ahead of formal approval as an emergency measure against Omicron.

Unlike Covid-19 vaccines, the drug does not target the ever-evolving spike protein that the coronavirus uses to invade cells.

China, where the coronavirus first emerged in late 2019, has not approved any foreign-made vaccines against Covid-19.

The world’s most populous nation has slowed new cases to a trickle with a strict “zero-Covid” strategy of targeted lockdowns, travel restrictions and lengthy quarantines.

But Beijing is still fighting several isolated flare-ups, locking down a southern city earlier this week as case numbers spiked.

The country’s uncompromising approach on the pandemic has led it to hold the ongoing Winter Olympics in a so-called “closed loop,” preventing participants from coming into contact with the wider population.

More than 400 cases related to the Games have been confirmed so far, according to organisers.

© Agence France-Presse

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