US Merck's Oral COVID Pill Efficacy Revised Down from 50% to 30%

An oral pill for COVID-19 treatment developed by Merck & Company.
[Photo by Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Seoyoung Kwon] The American pharmaceutical company Merck & Co. (MSD) has been found to have developed a pill for treating COVID-19 whose effectiveness is lower than previously announced.

On the 26th (local time), The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) reported that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) released preliminary review documents containing such data ahead of its decision on the emergency use authorization of the oral treatment developed by MSD.

MSD's treatment, "Molnupiravir," was known to reduce the hospitalization risk of COVID-19 patients by about half. However, MSD revised the effectiveness of Molnupiravir downward from 50% to 30% during the final analysis stage of the clinical results.

Accordingly, the FDA's external advisory committee is scheduled to decide whether to recommend emergency use authorization for Molnupiravir at a meeting on the 30th. An FDA official also stated that no decision has yet been made regarding the emergency use authorization of the pill.