Brand new oral Covid-19 treatment bound for Australian shores

Australians will soon have access to a brand new Covid treatment after Scott Morrison announced the purchase of 300,000 courses of the new drug.

Australians will soon have access to a new Covid-19 treatment in the form of a pill.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison announced on Monday that 300,000 courses of the promising oral antiviral Covid-19 treatment Molnupiravir had been purchased by the Government.

The Molnupiravir has been shown to prevent people with Covid-19 developing serious symptoms, with a recent trial finding the new pill reduced the risk of hospitalisation or death from Covid-19 by 50 per cent.
Mr Morrison said once the treatment was approved by the Therapeutic Goods Administration, Molnupiravir would join Australia’s main line of defence against Covid-19.

“Vaccines and new treatments like this will boost our National Plan to safely reopen Australia and keep Australia safely open,” the PM said on Monday.

“While our vaccination rate continues to climb, we’ve been investing in and closely monitoring research into Covid-19 treatments and we are securing supply of promising treatments.

“If the medical experts at the TGA approve this treatment for use, it will join other Covid-19 treatments such as sotrovimab and remdesivir which are already available to Australian doctors to help treat those with Covid-19.”

Prime Minister Scott Morrison announced 300,000 courses of the new oral antiviral Covid-19 treatment Molnupiravir had been purchased by the Australian government. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Gary Ramage

Molnupiravir is a capsule that is taken twice a day for five days by adult patients with mild-to-moderate Covid-19 symptoms.

The makers of the new treatment, Merck Sharp & Dohme and Ridgeback Biotherapeutics, recently announced that clinical trials of Molnupiravir showed the pill cut a patient’s risk of being hospitalised or dying from Covid-19 in half.

The pill was found to be effective against all variants of the coronavirus, including the highly transmissible Delta variant.

Pending its approval, Molnupiravir will be the first oral antiviral medication on the market for Covid-19.

The TGA’s consideration of Molnupiravir will occur in late 2021 with the delivery of the pill to the National Medical Stockpile expected to occur in early 2022.

In clinical trials, Molnupiravir has been found to be effective against all variants of the coronavirus, including the Delta variant. Picture: Handout / Merck & Co, Inc. / AFP.

Health Minister Greg Hunt said the government would continue to explore further Covid-19 treatments.

“All Covid-19 treatment assessment processes are being treated with the greatest priority as part of the Government’s response to the pandemic,” Mr Hunt said.

“The TGA is allowing data on the safety and efficacy of Covid-19 treatments to be provided as it is available to allow for an early approval for use in Australia without skipping any steps.

“In addition to this, our government will continue to seek access to further treatments which will assist with Australians living with Covid-19.”

Health Minister Greg Hunt said the government’s assessment of new Covid-19 treatments was being treated with the ‘greatest priority’. Picture: NCA NewsWire/Gary Ramage

Australia recently secured two additional dedicated Covid-19 treatments, remdesivir and sotrovimab. Both treatments must be administer intravenously.

Molnupiravir is not only easier to administer than intravenous approaches, but the capsule also does not require refrigeration. This should allow the new treatment to be used in the community or as a targeted intervention at high-risk locations and in rural areas.

On 9 August 2021, the TGA granted provisional determination to Merck Sharp & Dohme allowing the US-based company to apply for provisional registration of Molnupiravir in Australia.

Provisional determination is the first key step in the drug approval process.

Merck Sharp & Dohme are expected to submit a final application for provisional registration shortly, but Molnupiravir is still not anticipated to be available to the community until early next year.

Originally published as Brand new oral Covid-19 treatment bound for Australian shores