(Reuters) – Countries are scrambling to buy the antiviral pills developed by Merck and Pfizer for adult COVID-19 patients.
The European Medicines Agency on Jan. 27 gave the green light to use Pfizer’s antiviral COVID-19 pill for treating adults at risk of severe illness.
The regulator expects to give a final ruling on Merck’s molnupiravir by the end of February.
On Friday, India’s Dr.Reddy’s Labs said it had started commercial production of a generic version of Merck’s treatment.
Egypt, which approved Merck’s COVID pill on Jan. 25, said the drug will be produced locally.
Here is an alphabetical list of other countries and their orders:
Merck pill
COUNTRY VOLUME PRICE TIMING OF SOURCE
DELIVERY
Africa
Australia 300,000 doses
Belgium 10,000
courses
Canada 500,000
courses
Egypt to be
produced
locally
EU
Germany 80,000 doses
Indonesia 600,000 – 1 December ,
million doses 2021
Ireland
Italy 40,000 doses 40,000
+ 12,000 doses in
already week 3
distributed 2022
Japan 1.6 mln $1.2
courses billion
Malaysia 150,000
courses
Philippines 300,000 100-150 November
courses pesos 2021
($1.97-$2
.96) per
pill
Singapore
South Korea 200,000
courses
Switzerland 8,640 doses Jan 2022
“at the
latest”
Thailand 200,000
courses
UK 2,230,000 early
courses 2022
United 3,100,000 $700 per
States courses course,
total of
$2.2
billion
Pfizer pill
COUNTRY VOLUME PRICE TIMING OF SOURCE
DELIVERY
Africa
Australia 500,000 https://bit.ly/3BTUQeL
courses
Belgium 10,000
courses
Canada 1,000,000 30,400
doses courses
already
received,
120,000 to
be
delivered
by
end-March
EU
Germany
Ireland
Israel 100,000
Italy 600,000 during https://bit.ly/3g1w6Jj
complete 2022, with
courses first
11,200
courses to
be
delivered
in the
first week
of February
South Korea 70,000
courses
Thailand
UK 2,750,000 Early 2022
courses
United 20,000,000 $530 per Expects 4
States courses course, mln courses
$5.29 by end-Jan,
billion 10 mln by
for the June
first 10
mln
courses
ordered
($1 = 85.4800 taka)
(Reporting by Ina Kreutz, Agnieszka Gosciak and Federica Urso; Editing by Milla Nissi and Philippa Fletcher)
