Philippines approves Merck's Covid-19 pill for at-risk patients
The Southeast Asian nation has halved to three months the waiting time for a booster dose of Covid-19 vaccine in its battle to rein in the more infectious Omicron variant of coronavirus, which has forced a global tightening of curbs
The Philippines on Thursday approved emergency use of Merck & Co Inc's Covid-19 treatment pill for adult patients at risk of developing severe illness as it tries to boosts the country's arsenal of drugs to fight new variants.
It also approved the Pfizer-BioNTech Covid-19 vaccine for children aged 5-11 so the vaccine, which will be administered in a paediatric formulation, could be administered once it becomes available, its Food and Drug Administration (FDA) chief said.
FDA chief Rolando Enrique Domingo told a public briefing the benefits outweighed the risks and it was already being used for children in countries like the United States and Canada.
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In October, the FDA allowed 31 Philippine hospitals to use Merck's molnupiravir, the world's first oral antiviral medication for Covid-19, under a compassionate use permit even before approval for its wider use.
The Southeast Asian nation has halved to three months the waiting time for a booster dose of Covid-19 vaccine in its battle to rein in the more infectious Omicron variant of coronavirus, which has forced a global tightening of curbs.
