White House aims to boost use of COVID drugs like Paxlovid, citing plentiful supply
CBSN
The Biden administration says it is launching a new push to boost the use of several effective COVID-19 treatments nationwide. After months in short supply, federal officials say the medications are now more widely available, yet are being underused.
As part of the new effort, the federal government plans to allow thousands of more pharmacies to directly order highly effective COVID-19 treatments like Pfizer's Paxlovid antiviral pills, which can reduce the risk of becoming severely ill. They also plan to launch additional "test-to-treat" sites, where Americans can get diagnosed and receive the pills in a single visit.
Paxlovid was first authorized by the Food and Drug Administration in December, and supplies were hard to come by at first. Now the pills are no longer scarce, but they still aren't getting to everyone who might benefit from treatment.
