HCMC – Due to a surge in new Covid-19 infections in HCMC, the city’s Department of Health has asked the Administration of Science and Technology under the Health Ministry for an additional 100,000 doses of the Molnupiravir antiviral drug.
The doses will be used for a pilot program to treat Covid patients at home and those at healthcare centers in the city, said the director of the department, Tang Chi Thuong.
The city’s department is working with the Pham Ngoc Thach University of Medicine to test use Molnupiravir to treat patients with mild symptoms.
HCMC has been allocated 110,000 Molnupiravir doses, with 43,000 of them transferred to other provinces as required by the administration and the remaining 67,000 allocated to the city’s healthcare centers, field hospitals, hospitals and pop-up healthcare stations.
The health department has 2,000 Molnupiravir doses left and will allocate all of them to Covid treatment facilities within the next two days.
The city has seen a major spike in new cases since it reopened its economy in early October. There are currently 55,000 patients receiving treatment at home or quarantine facilities.
The Molnupiravir drug has been proven to help reduce hospitalizations and deaths and shorten the Covid treatment time.
