France cancels order for Merck's Covid antiviral drug
France's now-canceled order consists of 50,000 doses of the drug molnupiravir
France canceled its order for Merck's Covid antiviral drug after disappointing trial data was revealed, hoping instead to receive Pfizer's competing drug, France's health minister said Wednesday.
France is the first country to publicly say it canceled an order for the Merck treatment after the company released data in late November suggesting its drug was markedly less effective than previously thought, reducing hospitalizations and deaths in its clinical trial of high-risk individuals by about 30 percent.
"The latest studies weren't good," Health Minister Olivier Veran told BFMTV.
The cancelation would not incur a cost, Veran said.
A Merck's spokesperson said that France's planned purchase did not take place after the French health authority refused to authorize the pill in early December.
The company said it continued to work with the European Medicines Association (EMA) on its regulatory review of the drug. It has deals to supply or sell the pill to over 30 countries and shipped products to 12, Reuters reported.
France's now-canceled order consisted of 50,000 doses of the drug molnupiravir.
While vaccines are the primary tools used against Covid, there are hopes the new pills could be a game-changer in reducing the chances of dying or hospitalization for those most at risk.