EU drug agency gives advice on use of Pfizer COVID-19 pill

THE HAGUE, Netherlands – The European Union drug regulator issued advice Thursday on the use of Pfizer’s experimental pill to treat COVID-19 to countries where authorities may want to use it before it is officially authorized amid surging infection rates.

The European Medicines Agency said the medicine, which is not yet authorized for use in the 27-nation EU, “can be used to treat adults with COVID-19 who do not require supplemental oxygen and who are at increased risk of progressing to severe disease.” It said the drug should be given as soon as possible after diagnosis of COVID-19 and within 5 days of the start of symptoms.

Pfizer said earlier this week that the pill, called Paxlovid, appears effective against the new omicron variant that is currently sweeping through the United Kingdom and has been detected in dozens more countries around the world.