Anti-viral medicine to possibly treat COVID

Pharmaceutical company Merck says it will seek emergency use authorization as soon as possible

YUMA, Ariz. (KYMA, KECY) - A pharmaceutical company called Merck says it has developed a pill that interim results from one trial show cuts the risk of hospitalization and death in half if you get infected.

If authorized by the FDA, it would become the first antiviral pill to treat COVID-19.

"The way it would work is if you start having symptoms and you have -- and you're identified as having covid, then you could take the pill and it will reduce your risk of hospitalization and potentially death. But as I say, it's reduced. This is nothing nearly as powerful as getting a vaccine," says Texas Children's Hospital Center for Vaccine Development Dr. Peter Hotez.

Merck says it will seek emergency use authorization as soon as possible.

The development was welcome news at Saturday's White House COVID-19 briefing where medical experts cautioned the pill would not take the place of the COVID vaccine.

“If approved, I think the right way to think about this is this is a potential additional tool in our toolbox to protect people from the worst outcomes of covid," explains White House COVID-19 Response Coordinator Jeff Zients.

The battle over vaccine mandates is about to shift to California, which just became the first state in the country that will require all eligible public and private school students to be vaccinated in order to attend in person.

"I want to get this behind us, get the economy moving again, make sure our kids never have to worry about getting a call saying they can't go to school the next day because of the kids or a staff member tested positive," says Gov. Gavin Newsom.

The new rule will be phased in by grades, once the FDA grants full approval of the vaccine for kids 12 and older.

On the other side of the country, another deadline looms over vaccine mandates for teachers in New York City. This came after a group of employees filed an emergency petition with the U.S. Supreme Court asking it to put a stop to the mayor's vaccine mandate.

New York's mayor says 90% of the city's department of education employees have gotten at least one dose.

One teacher says she is ready to be fired rather than get vaccinated.

"I'm going to be terminated. It's going to be my last day," explains New York City Teacher Asia Levystone.

The school chancellor says they have enough substitute teachers to cover for the unvaccinated.