Last checked at 
By Deena Beasley
Feb 3 (Reuters) - The prices of drugs used to treat COVID-19
for those at risk of serious illness are "reasonably aligned"
with how much they help patients, according to a draft report
from drug-pricing research organization the Institute for
Clinical and Economic Review (ICER).
The report assessed Pfizer Inc's Paxlovid and Merck
& Co's molnupiravir - both recently authorized antiviral
pills - as well as sotrovimab, an intravenous monoclonal
antibody drug developed by GlaxoSmithKline Plc and Vir
Biotechnology Inc.
The three treatments - approved on an emergency basis for
people with mild-to-moderate COVID-19 deemed at risk of
progressing to serious illness - have been purchased by the U.S.
government and are being distributed free-of-charge to
healthcare providers.
The U.S. government has paid around $530 for a 5-day course
of Paxlovid, $700 per five-day course of molnupiravir, and
$2,100 for a course of sotrovimab - the lone available antibody
treatment shown to work against the now dominant Omicron variant
of the virus.
In clinical trials, ICER said molnupiravir cut
hospitalization rates for high-risk patients by 30%, compared
with 88% risk reduction for Paxlovid and 79% for sotrovimab.
"Right now the alignment of the price and benefits look
reasonable," ICER President Steve Pearson told Reuters.
The Pfizer and Merck drugs are meant to be taken at home,
while GSK's antibody is administered in hospital or infusion
centers.
ICER also analyzed the cost-effectiveness of fluvoxamine, a
40-year-old generic pill used to treat conditions such as
obsessive-compulsive disorder and depression at a cost of about
$10 for a 10-day course.
Researchers from the University of Minnesota applied in
December for emergency authorization of fluvoxamine for
high-risk COVID patients after studies showed that the
anti-depressant, which also has anti-inflammatory properties,
reduced hospitalization rates by 32%.
ICER uses a decades-old formula called the quality-adjusted
life year (QALY) – the cost of one year of good health for one
patient – to estimate fair value.
By that and other measures, ICER said fluvoxamine offers the
best value at $6,000 per QALY gained. It calculated Paxlovid was
second at $18,000 per QALY gained, followed by molnupiravir at
$55,000 and sotrovimab at $69,000.
Pearson said the pandemic has lots of "moving parts" and if
the risk of hospitalization from infection with Omicron or a
future variant proves to be lower, ICER's analysis would change.
The analysis applies only to use of the drugs for patients
at elevated risk of severe COVID-19. If the treatments were used
in lower-risk populations, "their cost effectiveness would be
significantly reduced," ICER said.
ICER plans to accept public comment on its draft and issue
an updated evidence report in late March.
(Reporting By Deena Beasley; Editing by Bill Berkrot)
