Molnupiravir's Ultimate Selling Price... Remains Unresolved [But Will Likely Fall -- One Way Or Another]; There Is No Doubt It Is A Merck Breakthrough...

This morning, Stat+ has put together a nice video explainer -- as to how the novel COVID-19 oral pill works.

But as we mentioned on the original news, last week -- there will be tremendous pressure to reduce the asking price -- to closer to $60 per course of treatment, globally. Still very good news (my backgrounder, here):

. . .Earlier this month, study results showed that molnupiravir, Merck’s investigational antiviral pill, cut hospitalization rates of Covid-19 patients by about half. Molnupiravir is the first oral treatment that has shown promise in treating Covid-19. Another antiviral, remdesivir, can only be administered intravenously.

“Having an oral option will be a big change,” said Benjamin Gewurz, associate director of the Ph.D. program in virology at Harvard Medical School. “Some people could just take a pill rather than having an IV or injection of some sort. And that’s what would be a huge, huge advance. . . .”

Onward, ever onward -- grinning, now. . . into the Fall sunshine.

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