Sept. 27, 2023 -- About 250,000 courses of Pfizer’s anti-COVID pills are being administered weekly, CEO Albert Bourla said this week.
The oral antiviral treatment Paxlovid is being distributed at no charge by the U.S. government, which bought about 24 million courses. About 15 million courses have been distributed so far, according to U.S. Department of Health and Human Services data, Reuters reported.
Bourla said it’s still not clear when Paxlovid will gain approval to be sold in the U.S commercial market, Reuters reported.
He said the company is “ready to supply its COVID-19 vaccines with a smooth transition to the commercial market,” Reuters reported.
"There is enough product that has been already manufactured and we keep manufacturing," Bourla said. "We are very confident that the market will be very well supplied."
Paxlovid -- administered for five days beginning shortly after symptoms begin – treats adults at higher risk of being hospitalized or dying from COVID-19.
Reuters reported “hiccups” in the rollout of newly updated COVID-19 vaccines, with some people saying pharmacies told them they didn’t have the shots.
Bourla spoke at the Cantor Fitzgerald Annual Healthcare Conference.