The American pharmaceutical giant Merck (MSD in Italy) has given free license of molnupiravir, its drug against Covid, of which it has requested emergency authorization from the Fda and which is now being examined by the European EMA, a non-profit organization of United Nations. The deal is restricted to developing countries and excludes many middle-income countries, including China and Russia and many Latin American countries.
The agreement with Medicines Patent Pool will allow the drug to be produced and sold at low prices in 105 countries, especially Asia and Africa, where vaccines against Covid still do not arrive in sufficient quantities. The high-income countries had accelerated the negotiation for the purchase of the drug, effectively tying the production line to their needs and raising the fear that poor countries could be cut off.
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The agreement between Merck and the Medicines Patent Pool was greeted with great satisfaction by those struggling for equal access to drugs and treatment, and was described as unusual for a large Western pharmaceutical company. Merck has already authorized eight major Indian pharmaceutical manufacturers to produce a generic of molnupiravir, pending regulatory approval.
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The generic drug will cost about $ 20 per 5-day treatment in developing countries, while in the US the government has already agreed to pay a first purchase at $ 712 per cycle.
The drug has been shown to halve the rate of hospitalization and death in high-risk Covid patients who take it shortly after infection, according to a large study conducted by the company.