A drug to facilitate access in poor countries to treatment against Covid-19 infections.

The American pharmaceutical giant Pfizer announced Tuesday, November 16 that it would agree to distribute generic versions of its anti-Covid-19 pill beyond rich countries once this treatment has been authorized.

The laboratory has also requested authorization for its marketing in the United States.

This voluntary licensing agreement was jointly announced by Pfizer and the Medicines Patent Pool (MPP), created by Unitaid.

Generic drug makers "who are sublicensed will be able to supply the new drug in combination with Ritonavir (a drug used against the AIDS virus) to 95 countries, covering up to about 53% of the population. global, "said a spokesperson for Unitaid, Hervé Verhoosel, during the regular UN briefing in Geneva.

In early November, Pfizer, which markets with the German BioNTech one of the most effective vaccines against Covid-19, published interim results of clinical trials of its oral antiviral PF-07321332 or Paxlovid.

They show 89% effectiveness in preventing the risk of hospitalization or death in adults at high risk of developing a severe form of Covid-19.

Pfizer thus joins its competitor Merck, which concluded a similar pact with the MPP for its own oral anti-Covid-19, Molnupiravir, also very effective.

If these promising results are confirmed, the availability of treatment "will be a matter of months, not years, but not weeks either," said Esteban Burrone, head of policy development at the MPP, in an interview. to AFP.

Pfizer applied for emergency marketing authorization in the United States on Tuesday.

No royalty for Pfizer in low income countries

The agreement announced on Tuesday includes all lower and lower middle income countries, as well as upper middle income countries in sub-Saharan Africa, and upper middle income countries that have achieved this status in the past five years, a specified Hervé Verhoosen.

Pfizer will not receive royalties on sales in low-income countries and will further waive royalties on sales in all countries covered by the agreement, as long as Covid-19 remains classified as a public health emergency of scope. international by the World Health Organization (WHO).

"We believe oral antivirals can play a vital role in reducing the severity of Covid-19 infections, reducing the burden on our healthcare system and can save lives," commented Albert Bourla, CEO of Pfizer, in a joint statement.

Pfizer and other pharmaceutical groups manufacturing anti-Covid-19 vaccines are accused of prioritizing profits, by selling to countries that can afford it, and thus participating in the vaccine inequality between rich and poor countries.

According to Médecin Sans Frontières (MSF), the price will be around $ 700 in rich countries, such as Molnupiravir, and it will be adapted for others.

MSF said it was "discouraged" by this partial agreement which excludes countries with significant generic manufacturing capacity, such as Argentina, Brazil or even China, Malaysia and Thailand.

Taken within five days of symptoms

The UK became the first country to authorize Molnupiravir on November 4.

These two antivirals work by decreasing the ability of a virus to replicate, thereby slowing down the disease.

Easy to administer because they can be taken at home, these treatments are a complement to vaccines.

For Esteban Burrone, one of the crucial aspects is that they make it possible to relieve the health structures by preventing hospitalizations: "This is a game-changer".

While easier to manufacture, transport and distribute than vaccines, these treatments should be taken within three to five days of symptom onset.

This assumes that tests are available and the diagnosis is confirmed by a doctor.

Michael Ryan, director of the WHO's Health Emergency Program, welcomed the arrival of these treatments on Friday, while insisting on the fact that it was necessary to wait for the final results of the trials.

"All of this is going in the right direction but we have to move forward step by step in a methodical way to be sure that clinical care for Covid-19 will improve using these molecules", he said during a point. press, recalling that the first line of defense against Covid-19 is vaccines and to avoid being infected.

With AFP

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