How Paxlovid came to be: From the germ of an idea to a vital tool against Covid

The therapy, which combines a new medicine invented by Pfizer with an old HIV drug, is an oral treatment given as a five-day course. Results unveiled in December generated immediate excitement among public health experts. When given in the first three days of infection to people who had not been vaccinated and were at high risk, it reduced hospitalization and death by an impressive 89%.