Health Canada approves Pfizer’s COVID-19 therapeutic – CBC

Antiviral Paxlovid reduces hospitalization and death in high-risk COVID-19 patients

Jan 17, 2022

Health Canada has approved Pfizer’s COVID-19 therapeutic, paving the way for the distribution of this potentially lifesaving drug at a time when the country’s hospitals are overwhelmed.

Dr. Supriya Sharma, the health regulator’s chief medical adviser, will speak to the media at 11 a.m. ET. CBCNews.ca will carry her remarks live.

Pfizer’s Paxlovid, which is an antiviral prescribed by a doctor and administered in pill form, is designed to help the body fight off the SARS-CoV-2 virus, reduce symptoms from an infection and shorten the period of illness.

The product has been hailed as a pandemic “game changer” by some doctors because it could reduce hospitalizations and deaths among COVID-19 patients. An effective pill that’s easy to self-administer at home could relieve some of the pressure on the health-care system and change the trajectory of the pandemic, experts say.

Read more: https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/health-canada-pfizer-therapeutic-1.6317505