Thu 07 October 2021:
Merck announced a supply and purchase deal with Singapore on Wednesday, ensuring access to its experimental oral COVID-19 antiviral medicine. Singapore is the latest Asian country to request supplies.
The drug Molnupiravir is designed to introduce errors into the genetic code of the coronavirus and would be the first oral antiviral medication for COVID-19. Merck is seeking approval from the US Food and Drug Administration for the pill.
The agreement was confirmed by Singapore’s health ministry, which declined to disclose on the quantity of dosages purchased due to commercial sensitivity.
The ministry said molnupiravir would be available for use after Merck, also known as MSD Pharma in Singapore, submitted data to the Health Sciences Authority (HSA) and gets authorization for use in Singapore.
“The addition of molnupiravir to our portfolio of COVID-19 therapeutics ensures that we have a range of treatment options for different patient groups,” the ministry told Reuters in an email.
There is no molnupiravir clinical trial in Singapore, it added.
The Merck tablet has also been purchased by Australia, and it is being considered by Thailand, South Korea, Taiwan, and Malaysia.
The Philippines is hoping that their drug trial would get it access.
The rush to acquire the medicine comes after interim clinical trial results revealed on Friday showed it could cut the risk of hospitalization or death for patients with severe COVID-19 by about half.
(With agency)
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