WASHINGTON (AP) – The White House on Thursday announced further steps to make Paxlovid antiviral treatment more accessible in the United States, as it anticipates that COVID-19 infections will continue to spread during the summer travel season.
The first test site to treat the nation with federal support opens Thursday in Rhode Island, providing patients with immediate access to the drug once they test positive. More federal-sponsored sites will open in the coming weeks in Massachusetts and New York City, both affected by a sharp rise in infections.
Next week, the U.S. will send authorized federal prescribers to various Minnesota-run test sites, making them test sites for treatment. Federal regulators have also sent clearer guidance to physicians to help them determine how to manage Paxlovid’s interactions with other drugs, with the goal of helping prescribers find ways to get the most life-saving medicine. patients.
Despite the increase in COVID-19 cases across the country, deaths from the virus have remained largely stable over the past eight weeks, as vaccine-boosting vaccines and widely available treatments have helped decoupling infections and mortality.
Confirmed infections in the United States have quadrupled since the end of March, from about 25,000 a day to more than 105,000 daily. But deaths, which have tended to delay infections for three to four weeks during the coronavirus pandemic, have steadily declined and now flattened to less than 300 a day.
It is the first time in the course of the pandemic that the two have no trend together, said White House COVID-19 coordinator Dr. Ashish Jha. He called it an important development to help Americans return to normal life.
“What has been noticeable in the latest increase in infections that we are seeing is how serious the serious illnesses are and, above all, the deaths are eight weeks later,” he said. “COVID is no longer the killer he was even a year ago.”
Jha said that given the widespread use of rapid tests at home, the results of which are often not communicated to public health officials, the actual number of daily infections is likely to be 200,000 or more. twice the reported rate, which, he said, only makes the mortality rate the plateau. more significant.
He credited vaccines, but also more than a fourfold increase in prescriptions over the past six weeks for the highly effective Paxlovid treatment.
Jha said that between 25,000 and 30,000 Paxlovid courses are prescribed every day. When administered within five days of the onset of symptoms, the drug has been shown to cause a 90% reduction in hospitalizations and deaths among patients most likely to develop serious illness.
Due to a change in the way Paxlovid is allocated to the states, the number of pharmacies where it is available has doubled in the last month to almost 40,000.
“We are now at a point where I think basically most deaths from COVID can be prevented, that the deaths that are happening out there are mostly unnecessary and now we have a lot of tools to make sure people don’t die from COVID. this disease, “Jha told The Associated Press on Wednesday.
As the summer months approach, Jha said the “number one” thing people need to do is “go get stronger” and if they have an innovative infection, they should check with their doctor to get Paxlovid. He said meetings of all sizes can be held more securely thanks to the tools available, if people use them.
“In places in the country where the rates of increase are much lower, where the infection is starting to spread more, I am absolutely concerned that we will see, unfortunately, that we will be able to see more serious diseases,” he said.
“Being vaccinated and empowered is an important part of making sure these types of activities are substantially safer,” he added. “And then, of course, we want to make Paxlovid available nationwide, so if you end up with an innovative infection, you’re still protected from serious illness.”
The United States has commissioned 20 million Paxlovid courses from pharmaceutical manufacturer Pfizer, and the country is at risk of depleting this winter if the drug continues to be widely used. The White House has been pushing Congress for additional funding for months to support the purchase of more Paxlovid and other treatments, as well as additional reinforcements.
While the administration has begun planning for the possible need to ration the federal supply of vaccines if Congress does not act, Jha said right now that his message to prescribers is that they should not worry about supply.
“I think we should use as much as necessary to protect Americans now,” Jha said.