Pfizer Says Paxlovid Prescriptions that Treat Covid Have Increased 10-fold in the U.S.

Since late February of this year, pharma giant Pfizer has revealed that Paxlovid prescriptions to treat Covid have increased tenfold.

The company’s CEO Albert Bourla said prescriptions for Paxlovid in the U.S. increased to nearly 80,000 patients for the week ending April 22, up from about 8,000 patients in late February.

More than 33,000 sites in the U.S. now have supply of Paxlovid, Bourla added, which is a fourfold increase over February.

It was today that Pfizer reported $1.5 billion in Paxlovid sales for the first quarter and maintained its guidance of $22 billion in sales for 2022.

Paxlovid supply was constrained when the antiviral first rolled out over the winter, but the company is ramping up production with 6 million courses produced through the end of March, said the CEO.

Pfizer is on track to manufacture 30 million courses in the first half of 2022 and 120 million by the end of the year, Bourla added.

The company is aiming to submit data on Covid-19 vaccine for kids under 5 in next few weeks, the chief executive continued.

Angela Hwang, Pfizer’s head of biopharmaceuticals, told analysts Tuesday that demand for the antiviral will increase as nations reorder doses and lower the eligibility age.

Hwang believes that Covid transmission will increase as governments ease public health restrictions, and Paxlovid will play an important role in treating people who get infected.

Pfizer doesn’t have any inventory on hand because every dose manufactured gets shipped, she said.

The U.S. has ordered a total of 20 million Paxlovid courses, with the delivery of the first 10 million courses to be completed in June and fulfillment of the second 10 million scheduled for September, according to the Biden administration.

The Health and Human Services Department aims to bring the antiviral to 40,000 locations across the nation. The U.S. has set up at least 2,200 sites where people can receive Paxlovid as soon as they test positive for the virus, including pharmacies, community health centers and long-term care facilities.

Paxlovid now has a 90% market share compared to Merck’s molnupiravir in the U.S. retail pharmacy, long-term care and mail order markets, Bourla said.

Disclaimer: We have no position in any of the companies mentioned and have not been compensated for this article.