The US health regulators authorised the first pill against Covid-19. It is a Pfizer drug that Americans can take at home to deflect the severe effects of the virus. Covid cases, hospitalisations and deaths in the US are rising, and health officials have warned of a new wave of infections due to the omicron variant.

The Pfizer drug, Paxlovid is a faster and cheaper way to treat early Covid-19 symptoms. All previously authorised drugs against the virus need an IV or an injection. An antiviral pill from Merck is also expected to be approved. But Pfizer’s drug is the preferred option because of its mild side effects and excellent effectiveness, which is about a 90 per cent decrease in hospitalisations and deaths.

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The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) authorised Pfizer’s Paxlovid drug for adults and children over the age of 12 years who have Covid-19 test and early symptoms and have a high risk of hospitalisation. That also includes people with conditions like obesity and heart disease. Children eligible for the drug must weigh at least 40 kilograms. The drug from both Pfizer and Merck are expected to be effective against omicron because they don’t target the spike protein where most of the variant’s worrisome mutations live.