Molnupiravir unlikely to make big impact on Indian companies: Research Delta Advisors

The government has approved Merck's Molnupiravir, a new COVID-19 antiviral pill, for emergency use. While assessing its impact, Nimish Mehta, Founder and Director at Research Delta Advisors said that the initial enthusiasm with the drug has faded post phase-III results, which were much lower in terms of efficacy than what it was in phase-I and phase-II and it is unlikely to make a big impact on many of the companies.

Molnupiravir reduces the need for hospitalization. So when there is a virus like omicron which spreads faster but the need of hospitalization is low, the need of such drug also comes down drastically, he mentioned.