Prime Minister Naftali Bennett announced Sunday in opening remarks to the weekly cabinet meeting that 5,000 doses Merck’s new COVID-19 medication, Molnupiravir, has arrived in Israel.
The medication is approved for home use by Israelis ages 18 and up and is to be taken within three to five days of symptom onset, for a five-day period.
In Israel, Molnupiravir is aimed at COVID-19 patients with mild to moderate symptoms who have at least one risk factor that could lead to hospitalization, when other existing and approved treatment options are not appropriate for their use.
“Tens of thousands” of doses of Paxlovid, the COVID-19 pill produced by Pfizer Pharmaceuticals, are already in Israel. Paxovid is reported to be 90 percent effective in preventing serious illness and death when taken shortly after onset of the virus.
The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) granted emergency use approval for both medications last month.