Pfizer Inc. (NYSE: PFE) today announced an agreement with the U.S. government to supply 10 million treatment courses of its investigational COVID-19 oral antiviral candidate, PAXLOVID™ (PF-07321332; ritonavir), subject to regulatory authorization from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). If approved or authorized, PAXLOVID, which originated in Pfizer's laboratories, would be the first oral antiviral of its kind, a 3CL protease inhibitor specifically designed to combat SARS-CoV-2.

AstraZeneca and its partners have released for supply two billion doses of their COVID-19 vaccine to more than 170 countries across every continent on the planet in the last 11 months.

Approximately two-thirds of these have gone to low- and lower-middle-income countries, including more than 175 million doses delivered to 130 countries through the COVAX Facility.

GlaxoSmithKline plc (LSE/NYSE: GSK) and Vir Biotechnology, Inc. (Vir) (Nasdaq: VIR) announced headline data from the randomised, multi-centre, open-label COMET-TAIL Phase III trial, which achieved its primary endpoint, demonstrating intramuscular (IM) administration of sotrovimab was non-inferior to intravenous (IV) administration for the early treatment of mild-to-moderate COVID-19 in high-risk, non-hospitalised adults and adolescents (12 years of age and older).

Merck (NYSE: MRK), known as MSD outside the United States and Canada, and Ridgeback Biotherapeutics announced that the United Kingdom Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) has granted authorization in the United Kingdom (U.K.) for molnupiravir (MK-4482, EIDD-2801), the first oral antiviral medicine authorized for the treatment of mild-to-moderate COVID-19 in adults with a positive SARS-CoV-2 diagnostic test and who have at least one risk factor for developing severe illness.

The editors of Time announced that the Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine has been selected as one of Time's Best Inventions of 2021.

The vaccine, for which Johnson & Johnson received Emergency Use Authorization from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in February, is being recognized in the Medical Care category alongside two other COVID-19 vaccines.

Roche (SIX: RO, ROG; OTCQX: RHHBY) today announced that the European Medicines Agency's (EMA) Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use (CHMP) has recommended the approval of the antibody combination, Ronapreve™ (casirivimab and imdevimab), for treating COVID-19 in adults and adolescents (from 12 years of age and weighing at least 40 kilograms) who do not require supplemental oxygen and who are at increased risk of their disease becoming severe, and for preventing COVID-19 in people aged 12 years and older weighing at least 40 kilograms (pre- or post-exposure prophylaxis).

Novartis has agreed to sell 53.3 million (approximately 33%) Roche bearer shares in a bilateral transaction to Roche for a total consideration of USD 20.7 billion.

Vas Narasimhan, CEO of Novartis, said: "After more than 20 years as a shareholder of Roche, we concluded that now is the right time to monetize our investment.