Coronavirus Hong Kong: high-risk patients aged under 60 eligible to receive Covid-19 antivirals as authorities push to reduce severe cases
- Hospital Authority says patients can get molnupiravir and Paxlovid if they are high risk and seek medical help inside five days of showing Covid-19 symptoms
- Hong Kong on Friday reports 4,884 new infections, 188 of which were imported, and five additional deaths
High-risk coronavirus patients in Hong Kong aged under 60, such as those with chronic illnesses, are eligible to receive Covid-19 antivirals regardless of their vaccination status, health officials have announced.
Dr Gladys Kwan, a chief manager with the Hospital Authority, on Friday said guidelines for prescription of oral drugs molnupiravir and Paxlovid had been eased to reduce the risk of patients developing severe symptoms or possibly dying. Both medications have been available in the city since the first quarter of the year.
The tablets could only be administered to three groups of Covid-19 patients under earlier guidelines – people aged 60 or older or anyone severely immunocompromised, regardless of their vaccination status, as well as patients aged under 60 if they were unvaccinated, presented mild symptoms within five days of a positive test and who were considered high risk.
But Kwan said the age limit had been scrapped for high-risk patients who were vaccinated, including those with chronic illnesses, if they sought medical help within the first five days of showing symptoms and were not found to be clinically unsuitable.
“Taking the drugs will slow the deterioration of their condition and reduce their viral loads, which can hasten the arrival of the negative result and recovery,” she said.
Kwan explained that patients with conditions such as high blood pressure or obesity were considered high risk as they could easily develop complications after contracting Covid-19.