Gates Foundation pledges $120M to support access for Covid-19 pill

[Yo_Mama_Been_Loggin]

The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation is committing $120 million to speed up access for lower-income countries to a drug that treats Covid-19, the foundation announced Tuesday.

The drug, molnupiravir, is an investigational antiviral pill from pharmaceutical giant Merck & Co. in collaboration with Ridgeback Biotherapeutics. The Gates Foundation said its donation will be used to develop, produce and distribute generic versions of the drug.

Molnupiravir hasn't been approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration yet, but Merck is seeking emergency use authorization for the experimental treatment.

"To end this pandemic, we need to ensure that everyone, no matter where they live in the world, has access to life-saving health products. The unjust reality, however, is that low-income countries have had to wait for everything from personal protective equipment to vaccines," Gates Foundation co-chair Melinda French Gates said in an announcement. "That is unacceptable."

https://www.bizjournals.com/seattle/news/2021/10/20/gates-foundation-covid-drug-donation.html

[walkingman]

1. Thank Goodness we have billionaires that are not simply

crony capitalists as so many are these days. If there is a heaven these folks will be in front of the line.