Government to launch ‘antiviral taskforce’ to find take-at-home Covid drugs

A new antiviral taskforce is being set up by the Government in the hope that people in the UK could be offered medication to treat Covid at home from autumn of this year.

Boris Johnson said earlier this week that he would be assembling a team of scientists to find ways for people to recover from the virus without having to go to hospital, because the UK must “learn to live with this disease, as we live with other diseases”.

No drugs have yet been agreed on, but the government are in discussions with pharmaceutical companies about ‘promising’ antiviral treatments being developed.

Experts are looking for a minimum of two cost-effective treatments that can be taken at home from later this year. The tablets will be offered to people who have tested positive for Covid or who have been in close contact with an infected person.

The panel will be made up of academic experts, members of pharmaceutical firms, and government staff.

The prime minister said the medication could “provide another vital defence against any future increase in infections and save more lives”, adding that there are also hopes they will help stop the new variants making people seriously ill.

Mr Johnson said “This means, for example, that if you test positive there might be a tablet you could take at home to stop the virus in its tracks and significantly reduce the chance of infection turning into more severe disease. Or if you’re living with someone who has tested positive, there might be a pill you could take for a few days to stop you getting the disease yourself.”

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Posted by Tony May, Partner/head of Clinical Negligence Department, Chadwick Lawrence LLP (tonymay@chadlaw.co.uk ), medical negligence lawyers and clinical negligence solicitors in Huddersfield, Leeds, Wakefield and Halifax, West Yorkshire.

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