NIH says Pfizer’s Paxloid should be first treatment option for certain COVID-19 patients

The National Institutes of Health on Wednesday updated its COVID-19 treatment guidelines for patients with mild to moderate forms of COVID-19 who are at high risk for disease progression. The new guidelines now include the recently authorized antivirals developed by Pfizer Inc.
PFE,
-1.05%
and Merck & Co. Inc.
MRK,
-0.31%
/Ridgeback Biotherapeutics, note that GlaxoSmithKline
GSK,
-2.41%
and Vir Biotechnology Inc.’s
VIR,
-4.87%
sotrovimab is the only monoclonal antibody that is thought to be effective against omicron, and have added a three-day course of Gilead Sciences Inc.’s
GILD,
-1.93%
Veklury as a treatment option. The panel suggests that clinicians first use Pfizer’s Paxlovid, then sotrovimab, then Veklury, and the final option should be molnupiravir, which is the Merck/Ridgeback drug.