Unfortunately, the COVID pandemic is not over yet, regardless of how much some people want to believe otherwise. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, who is the Director-General of the World Health Organization, recently emphasized that the world hasn’t defeated the pandemic yet.
Thankfully to medical researchers, the world now has ways of tackling the ongoing pandemic. One of those methods is represented by antiviral pills, and it seems to become easier and easier to benefit from them.
US President Joe Biden offers free COVID pills after testing
According to CNET.com, US President Joe Biden announced the ‘Test to Treat’ initiative. This means that those who test positive for COVID at a pharmacy can benefit from Paxlovid, meaning antiviral Pfizer pills, for free.
Joe Biden declared during the State of the Union address, as the mentioned website cites:
Thanks to the progress we have made this past year, COVID-19 need no longer control our lives. I know some are talking about ‘living with COVID-19.’ But tonight, I say that we will never just accept living with COVID-19.
Back in December 2021, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) granted emergency use authorization for Pfizer’s Paxlovid antiviral pill.
June Raine, who’s the chief of Britain’s Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA), said back in December:
We now have a further antiviral medicine for the treatment of COVID-19 that can be taken by mouth rather than administered intravenously. This means it can be administered outside a hospital setting.
The US President also declared, as cited by CNET.com:
I cannot promise a new variant won’t come,
But I can promise you we’ll do everything within our power to be ready if it does.
Hopefully, we’re all heading towards the end of the coronavirus pandemic, but we must remember that caution is always a good thing.
