High-risk patients. Patients with COVID-19 now have new medications they may take at home to avoid going to the hospital — assuming physicians can deliver the tablets to them quickly enough.

Prescriptions are being delivered the same day in health systems across the country. Some clinics have begun testing and treating patients in a single visit, a move championed by President Joe Biden's administration.

Within five days following the onset of symptoms, patients should be put on either Pfizer's Paxlovid pills or Merck's molnupiravir capsules. If another surge occurs, this might prevent people with serious health concerns from becoming sicker and overcrowding hospitals.

However, the short timeline has brought up a number of issues. Some individuals are putting off testing because they believe they have a cold. Others have refused or been unable to test the new medications.

"We can make this lot more manageable in the future, if patients are willing to take care of themselves," said Dr. Bryan Jarabek, who works for the Minnesota health system M Health Fairview and helps lead COVID-19 treatment and immunization initiatives.

The medications were approved by the Food and Drug Administration last year. Doctors lauded the tablets as a significant step forward in the fight against COVID-19, owing to their ease of use compared to other COVID-19 therapies that require infusions or injections.

Patients who overlook symptoms like a headache or sniffles and wait to see whether they go away before getting care may miss the medicines' limited window.
Dr. Thomas Lew of Stanford University says he's encountered high-risk, unvaccinated patients who have waited more than a week. Some oxygen-dependent hospital patients have informed him they were unconcerned about their early symptoms.

"Everyone in the family thought it was a cold or allergy season was approaching," he explained, "but it was COVID all along."

People put off seeking care for a variety of health issues, not only COVID-19, according to Lew. In the case of the virus, however, the doctor feels that patients may be unaware of the tight deadline.

Doctors note that even individuals who are swiftly screened occasionally refuse to take the medications.
Source Medscape