16 November 2021 12:00 am Views - 126
By Kelum Bandara
COVID-19 Technical Committee, the panel of medical experts, has endorsed the use of Molnupiravir, the first oral antiviral pill developed to treat patients down with SARS-CoV-2, State Minister Prof. Channa Jayasumana said.
The pill, orally administered, reduces the risk of hospitalisation and death by 50 per cent. It has been developed by the drug companies Merck, Sharp and Dohme (MSD) and Ridgeback Biotherapeutics.
Prof. Jayasumana, who is the State Minister of Production, Supply and Regulation of Pharmaceuticals, said the committee approved the use of this pill in the treatment of COVID-19 patients upon his letter of request.
He said it would be registered in Sri Lanka in the future and prescribed for patients