Episode 188: Carlos del Rio on Covid antivirals, an FDA conundrum, & the rise of Omicron
Will the first Covid-19 pill be all that useful? How worrisome is Omicron? And when will it be safe to congregate? \n\nFirst, STAT's Matthew Herper joins us to talk about a tense debate among FDA advisers about molnupiravir, a Merck treatment for Covid-19 whose luster has faded over time. Then, we talk to Emory University\u2019s Carlos del Rio about the potential of Pfizer\u2019s antiviral pill, the future treatment landscape for Covid-19, and how the emerging Omicron variant might change the global pandemic response.