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He revealed hundreds of thousands of doses have been ordered to slash the risk of the vulnerable ending up in hospital.
But the Health Secretary warned the “gap is narrowing” in the race between vaccines and the virus as he urged everyone to get jabbed to avoid cases reaching 100,000 a day.
Mr Javid said: “If we all play our part we give ourselves the best possible chance to get through this winter and enjoy Christmas with our loved ones.” The UK’s Antivirals Taskforce has secured deals for the new drugs that can speed recovery and cut the danger of those in the early stages of infection becoming severely ill.
The first – molnupiravir – was found in trials to cut risk of hospitalisation or death by half when taken within a few days of symptoms starting. It disrupts the virus’s ability to reproduce.
But there are hopes it could have even better results as it was only tested on unvaccinated volunteers.
Britain has ordered 480,000 courses of treatment for it from Merck Sharp and Dohme (MSD).
The second drug, PF-07321332/ritonavir, is in phase two/three trials and the deal with Pfizer is for 250,000 courses.
Both drugs will need to be approved by the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) before they can go through an
NHS clinical trial. Molnupiravir could be deployed after mid-November, followed by the Pfizer drug in late January or early February.
Mr Javid said the drugs are likely to be given to infected people or those exposed to the virus in a localised outbreak, for example at a care home. The new drugs be used alone or
in combination.
Deputy chief medical officer Professor Jonathan Van-Tam said the antivirals were “another key intervention”. He added: “They will be particularly vital in protecting those who may not get the same antibody response to the vaccines as the majority of the population.
“We will now work quickly to ensure the right people receive these treatments as soon as possible, should they be approved by the MHRA.” Mr Javid said the UK was one of the first countries in the world to procure the medicines. Dr Ruth McKernan, chair at Bioindustry Association, welcomed the deals and said the two drugs selected were “the strongest candidates available for this winter”.
She added: “It is very good news if we can add a couple of antiviral drugs to the therapeutics available.
Prevention is still better than cure but for vulnerable patients who can’t be vaccinated or don’t respond well, post-infection treatment with an oral drug is important.”
But at a Downing Street briefing Mr Javid warned: “We cannot be complacent, when Covid-19 remains such a potent threat.
“We’ve been in a race between the vaccine and the virus and although we’re ahead in that race, the gap is narrowing. We’ve come so far, thanks to the efforts of so many, but with winter ahead we can’t blow it now.”
The announcement comes amid mounting concern about rising Covid cases, hospital admissions and deaths.
There were 49,139 further infections confirmed across the UK yesterday and 179 deaths.
The NHS Confederation, which represents health bodies, called for the Government to implement its winter Plan B and reintroduce some restrictions. Mr Javid admitted ministers were concerned and warned it was possible cases would climb to 100,000 a day.
However, he insisted it was not time to trigger contingency measures saying they were sticking with Plan A “at this point”.
He said officials did not believe pressures on the NHS were “unsustainable”. But the British Medical Association backed calls for tougher curbs and accused the Government of having “taken its foot off the brake” by giving the impression the pandemic was over. BMA council chair Dr Chaand Nagpaul said: “The Government said it would enact Plan B to prevent the NHS from being overwhelmed; as doctors on the frontline we say that time is now.” He said that the new treatments will not be available until later and “urgent action is needed now to stem the scale of suffering and the real risk of overwhelming the NHS”.
But Mr Javid urged Britons to summon up the Blitz spirit and do everything to help keep infections down. The Health Secretary said: “None of us want to go backwards now. So we must all play our part in this national mission and think about what we can do to make a difference.” He asked people to help secure their “freedoms for the long term” by getting inoculation as soon as possible.
Mr Javid appealed to the five million unjabbed Britons and asked the public to persuade friends, family members and colleagues.
The minister also encouraged people to get boosters when invited and book an appointment online if they do not hear from the NHS within a week of becoming eligible, six months after their second dose.
More than four million booster doses have been dished out in England and thousands more are becoming eligible every week.
Mr Javid encouraged people to minimise risk of spreading infection by meeting outdoors where possible, keeping enclosed spaces well-ventilated, wearing masks in crowded places and using free lateral flow tests on offer.
He said: “These little steps are more important now than ever.”
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