The Biden administration announced plans Tuesday to nearly double the number of pharmacies that carry antiviral pills to combat covid-19 as many consumers report difficulty finding a doctor to prescribe the medication, or a pharmacy that carries it, when they get sick.
The drug has been in increased demand in recent weeks as coronavirus cases once again rise, driven by the highly transmissible omicron subvariant BA.2. The seven-day average of new coronavirus cases was 47,029 on Monday, up from about 38,000 one week prior, even as many new infections are unreported as more people rely on home test kits.
The actions are designed to surmount hurdles that have emerged as people try to get Paxlovid, which studies have shown can reduce the risk of hospitalization or death by about 90 percent when taken within three to five days of the start of symptoms. Those challenges include an inability to find a doctor who will quickly prescribe the medication or a nearby pharmacy that carries it, a lack of knowledge about the drug and who might be eligible for it, and inequities in who can get it based on their access to medical care.
While Biden administration officials have said the drug, authorized by federal regulators late last year, is now in ample supply — the United States has committed to buying 20 million treatment courses — many patients have faced myriad challenges trying to get prescriptions. There have also been confusion and inconsistency among doctors over how they prescribe the drug and for whom, since Paxlovid was originally authorized for people at high risk of severe disease and was in short supply during the omicron surge.
The medication is available in about 20,000 locations across the country, including some pharmacies, hospitals, community health clinics and urgent-care centers. In some areas, however, residents may live hundreds of miles from the nearest pharmacy or provider that carries the drug. The administration said it expects Paxlovid to soon be available in about 30,000 locations, with a goal of 40,000 sites in the coming weeks.
It will also allow certain pharmacies to order the antivirals directly from the government for free.
In recent weeks, some patients have reported calling multiple pharmacies and even visiting numerous health clinics and emergency rooms in sometimes unsuccessful efforts to get Paxlovid. Even doctors have shared stories of herculean efforts to get the drug for their older, high-risk relatives after they became infected.
To that end, the administration said it would work to provide clearer guidance for doctors about covid-19 treatments, including the benefits of various drugs, their interactions with other drugs, side effects and medical conditions where they may not be appropriate, according to a White House fact sheet. Those efforts should help put doctors “in a position to quickly prescribe one of these treatments where appropriate,” the fact sheet states.
On Monday, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention also put out a national health advisory to physicians, instructing them to not use certain treatments, including antibiotics, in patients with covid.
And in an acknowledgment of the information gap that has made it difficult for many Americans to know about Paxlovid and how to access it, administration officials said they would work to boost public awareness. They also said they wanted to ensure that people knew that the drug must be taken within five days of the onset of symptoms.