Why is the anti-Covid pill so little used in France?

Six months after its authorisation, Paxlovid remains very little used. The effectiveness of the only antiviral authorized in France is however proven: it reduces by 87.8% the risk of progression to a severe form of Covid (hospitalization or death) when taken within five days of the appearance of the first symptoms. Recommended for people at risk of severe form – carriers of comorbidities or immunocompromised, and for over 60s – it has only been prescribed to 20,000 patients, according to Medicare. A derisory figure when we know that for the single day of July 22, 971 new cases were recorded among those over 60, according to Public Health France. This would not be a problem of stock, this being sufficient “to cover current and future needs”, assures the Ministry of Health, which nevertheless refuses to give its exact level.

“This number remains insufficient compared to the United States, for example, where the Test & Treat strategy (diagnose and treat…