 | | | | Pfizer Inc and Merck & Co Inc have developed experimental antiviral pills that have shown promising efficacy in trials of adults with COVID-19 who are at high risk of serious illness. Both drugs also are being studied to see if they can prevent infection in people exposed to the virus. | | | | | | The White House is "very confident" that President Joe Biden's vaccine rules for U.S. companies can withstand any legal challenges, spokeswoman Karine Jean-Pierre said Friday. | | | | | | Pfizer Inc is in discussions with 90 countries over supply contracts for its experimental COVID-19 pill, which was shown to reduce by 89% the risk of hospitalization or death in patients at high risk of severe illness, Chief Executive Officer Albert Bourla said in an interview on Friday. | | | | | | Austria said on Friday it is barring those not fully vaccinated against COVID-19 from cafes, restaurants and hairdressers as infections approach the record set a year ago and the government struggles to convince holdouts to get the shot. | | | | | | China-backed Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) will continue to finance developing countries acquire COVID-19 vaccines, a senior executive said on Thursday. | | | | | | U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Friday he would convene a virtual meeting of foreign ministers from around the globe to discuss the COVID-19 pandemic next week, pledging to work to address global inequalities in access to vaccines. | | | | | | GlaxoSmithKline said its anaemia pill for patients with kidney disease was shown to have about the same side effect risk as the current standard treatment in two important patient groups, a key advantage in a tight race with rival drug developers. | | | | | | U.S. President Joe Biden's administration on Friday set a goal for driving down the cost of removing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, as part of a U.S. plan to decarbonize the economy by 2050. | | | | | | A trial of Pfizer Inc's experimental antiviral pill for COVID-19 was shown to cut by 89% the chances of hospitalization or death for adults at risk of developing severe disease, a "stunning" result that potentially adds another weapon to combat the pandemic. | | | | | | Pfizer Inc and United Nations-backed Medicines Patent Pool (MPP) are in advanced talks on a licensing agreement that would allow qualified third parties to manufacture and supply the U.S. drugmaker's oral antiviral pill candidate, pending regulatory nod, the MPP told Reuters. | | | | | |
