Coronavirus tally: Pfizer’s Paxlovid COVID antiviral has little benefit for younger adults, new study finds

Pfizer’s COVID antiviral Paxlovid appears to have little or no benefit for younger adults, although it still reduces the risk of hospitalization or death in seniors, according to a new Israeli study, the Associated Press reported. Data from the 109,000 patient study may renew questions about the U.S. government’s use of Paxlovid, which has become the go-to treatment for COVID-19 due to its at-home convenience. The Biden administration has spent more than $10 billion purchasing the drug and making it available at thousands of pharmacies through its test-and-treat initiative. Biden himself took Paxlovid during his recent bout with COVID. The news comes as U.S. known cases of COVID are continuing to ease, although the true tally is likely higher given how many people are testing at home, where the data are not being collected. The daily average for new cases stood at 91,383 on Wednesday, according to a New York Times tracker, down 16% from two weeks ago. The daily average for hospitalizations was down 8% at 39,443, while the daily average for deaths is down 4% to 458. Globally, the confirmed case tally rose above 598.5 million on Tuesday, according to data aggregated by Johns 2Hopkins, while the death toll is above 6.46 million with the U.S. leading the world with 93.9 million cases and 1,042,398 deaths.