First at-home prescription medication for COVID-19 approved for use in Canada
Canadian health officials now have another weapon to use in the battle against COVID-19 after Health Canada approved Pfizer's COVID-19 antiviral treatment Paxlovid.
Paxlovid is the first oral and at-home prescription medication to be cleared for use in Canada and can be given to adults aged 18 and older to treat mild to moderate cases of COVID-19, if they have a confirmed positive test and are at a high-risk of becoming seriously ill.
“It’s for those who have significant underlying health conditions. It’s not meant for treatment in hospital but it’s for early treatment fairly quickly after symptoms start,” says Dr. Heather Morrison, Prince Edward Island's chief public health officer.
Canada pre-ordered 1 million courses of the treatment. As of Monday, 30,400 have been delivered.
As a result, priority use will be given to people who:
- are immunocompromised, regardless of their vaccination status
- are over the age of 60 living in remote communities
- are in long-term care homes
- are in first nations communities
- are aged 80 and over who are not fully vaccinated
“It’s finally a solution to frankly stopping people from dying,” says Bill VanGorder, spokesperson with the Canadian Association of Retired Persons (CARP).
VanGorder says he's confident the new drug will help those who are sick overcome the virus.
“People over 80 who aren’t vaccinated are the ones who generally are most at risk," he says.
The treatment involves taking three pills made up of two different drugs, twice a day for five days.
“I think Canadians should be very happy today to hear that the oral antivirals are beginning to become available in Canada,” says Dr. Theresa Tam, Canada's chief public health officer.
In a statement, a spokesperson with Nova Scotia's Department of Health and Wellness points out not everyone will need or benefit from the pill.
"Based on research, it is only specific groups at high-risk of progression who we know may benefit from this medication. Paxlovid does not replace a COVID-19 vaccine and being unvaccinated is not, by itself, an indication for the use of this medication," reads the statement.
Another 120,000 treatment courses of Paxlovid are expected to arrive in the country by the end of March.
Canada has an option to secure another half million if they are needed.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Quebec nurse had to clean up after husband's death in Montreal hospital
On a night she should have been mourning, a nurse from Quebec's Laurentians region says she was forced to clean up her husband after he died at a hospital in Montreal.
Northern Ont. lawyer who abandoned clients in child protection cases disbarred
A North Bay, Ont., lawyer who abandoned 15 clients – many of them child protection cases – has lost his licence to practise law.
Bank of Canada officials split on when to start cutting interest rates
Members of the Bank of Canada's governing council were split on how long the central bank should wait before it starts cutting interest rates when they met earlier this month.
Maple Leafs fall to Bruins in Game 3, trail series 2-1
Brad Marchand scored twice, including the winner in the third period, and added an assist as the Boston Bruins downed the Toronto Maple Leafs 4-2 to take a 2-1 lead in their first-round playoff series Wednesday
Cuban government apologizes to Montreal-area family after delivering wrong body
Cuba's foreign affairs minister has apologized to a Montreal-area family after they were sent the wrong body following the death of a loved one.
'It was instant karma': Viral video captures failed theft attempt in Nanaimo, B.C.
Mounties in Nanaimo, B.C., say two late-night revellers are lucky their allegedly drunken antics weren't reported to police after security cameras captured the men trying to steal a heavy sign from a downtown business.
What is changing about Canada's capital gains tax and how does it impact me?
The federal government's proposed change to capital gains taxation is expected to increase taxes on investments and mainly affect wealthy Canadians and businesses. Here's what you need to know about the move.
New Indigenous loan guarantee program a 'really big deal,' Freeland says at Toronto conference
Canada's Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland was among the 1,700 delegates attending the two-day First Nations Major Projects Coalition (FNMPC) conference that concluded Tuesday in Toronto.
'Life was not fair to him': Daughter of N.B. man exonerated of murder remembers him as a kind soul
The daughter of a New Brunswick man recently exonerated from murder, is remembering her father as somebody who, despite a wrongful conviction, never became bitter or angry.