Pfizer Says Its Covid-19 Pill Will Reduce Hospitalization and Death

“Similar reductions in COVID-19-related hospitalization or death were observed in patients treated within five days of symptom onset; 1% of patients who received PF-07321332 (with) ritonavir were hospitalized through Day 28 following randomization (6/607 hospitalized, with no deaths), compared to 6.7% of patients who received a placebo,” the company said.

“It means instead of 10 going to hospital, only one will go, and likely very few, if any, will die,” Bourla told CNN.

It said 19% of patients given the treatment suffered adverse events, compared to 21% who got placebo, but declined to disclose what those adverse events were.

Bourla called the results “a great day for humanity,” and noted that they came almost a year to the day of the company announcing early results for its Covid-19 vaccine, which the company released on November 9, 2020.

Bourla said the pill could save millions of lives, but he still wanted to emphasize the importance of vaccination. But vaccines are not effective 100% effective, and not everyone will get vaccinated, Bourla said, something that can lead to crowded hospitals and ICUs.

“Now we have a solution for that, and this is exactly where it fits,” Bourla said. “This is to treat those that unfortunately got the disease.”

Currently, remdesivir, sold under the brand name Veklury, is the only antiviral approved by FDA for treatment of Covid-19. It’s given by intravenous infusion, so it’s not as simple to administer as a pill.

People can also be treated with monoclonal antibodies, which are injected or infused therapies that kickstart the immune system to help fight off infection. They are not as easy to take as a pill and must be administered by a trained professional.