"With more than five million deaths and countless lives affected by this devastating disease worldwide, there is an urgent need for life-saving treatments," said Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla.
The high effectiveness of the pill shown in a clinical study shows that antiviral drugs in pill form could play a "central role in the fight against Covid-19".
Pfizer said a week and a half ago that paxlovid reduced the likelihood of hospitalization or death in high-risk patients after a coronavirus infection by 89 percent.
Patients took the pill every twelve hours for five days.
Cheaper in poorer countries
Several pharmaceutical companies are currently working on the development of drugs that will reduce the effects of infection with the coronavirus.
The British Medicines Agency recently gave the go-ahead for the drug Molnupiravir from the US pharmaceutical company Merck Sharp & Dohme (MSD) for the treatment of mild to moderately ill Covid patients.
Paxlovid and molnupiravir reduce the ability of the virus to multiply in the body's cells and thus slow down the further development of the Covid-19 disease.
The pills have the advantage of being easy to take at home.
On the other hand, other drugs, such as the antiviral drug Remdesivir, must be administered intravenously.
Pfizer announced on Tuesday that it would make the new corona drug available cheaper in poorer countries after it had been approved.
The group announced an agreement to sublicense generic drug manufacturers to produce the pill without royalties.