The U.S. will buy 10 million courses of Pfizer's COVID-19 antiviral pill Paxlovid for $5 billion, The Washington Post reported Nov. 16.
Paxlovid reduced the risk of hospitalization or death by 89 percent in a phase 3 trial, according to Pfizer. On Nov. 16, the company applied for emergency use authorization from the FDA for the pill.
Pfizer's application comes about a month after Merck asked the FDA for emergency use authorization of molnupiravir, the COVID-19 antiviral pill it is developing with Ridgeback Biotherapeutics. The U.S. signed a deal with Merck in June to purchase 1.7 million courses of molnupiravir for $1.2 billion if it's authorized by the FDA.