The White House’s $3 Billion Plan for COVID-19 Antiviral Pills: The Difference They Could Make

• The Biden administration has committed $3 billion toward the development of antiviral medications.
• The hope is the pills will effectively treat COVID-19 symptoms as well as be ready for use in future pandemics.
• Experts say the goal of the program is a good one, but they’re uncertain if it can be accomplished.

In an effort to deal with the present and look toward the future, White House officials have committed $3 billion for the development of antiviral therapies.

In announcing the new funding, Dr. Anthony Fauci, chief medical adviser to President Joe Biden, said the money would accelerate the development of antivirals to treat COVID-19 as well as prepare for other possible pandemics.

“There are few treatments that exist for many of the viruses that have what we call ‘pandemic potential,’” Fauci said in a press briefing this past week.

“Antivirals can and are an important complement to existing vaccines, especially for individuals with certain conditions that might put them at a greater risk. For those who vaccines may not be as protective, we know that there are many people who are immunosuppressed, in which vaccines, at least initially, may not give an optimum response,” he said.

“And it also adds a line of defense against other unexpected emerging things, like variants of concern that we are currently dealing with.”

The Biden administration’s COVID-19 strategy promises to speed up the clinical testing of antiviral therapies already in development, as well as discovering new antiviral medications.