Boris Johnson has announced a new taskforce designed to help develop tablets people can take at home to help them recover from coronavirus.
The Prime Minister said on Tuesday it would be modelled on UK Government-funded search that led to the “success of our vaccination programme”.
Speaking at a Downing Street press conference on Tuesday, Johnson said medicines could be available as early as the autumn and would be designed to stop the infection spreading and speed up recovery time.
He said: "This means, for example, that if you test positive there might be a tablet you could take home to stop the virus in its tracks, and significantly reduce the chance of infection turning into more severe disease.
“Or if you’re living with someone who has tested positive there might be a pill you can take for a few days to stop you getting the disease yourself.”
The Prime Minister added: “By focusing on these new antivirals we hope to lengthen the UK’s leading in medicines and life sciences and to give greater confidence to the people of this country that we continue on our path towards freedom.”
Antiviral drugs are a type of medication used specifically for treating viral infections, and act by killing or preventing the growth of viruses.
The Department for Health and Social Care (DHSC) said the taskforce’s aim was to have at least two effective treatments this year, a tablet or a capsule, which people can take following a positive test or exposure to someone with the virus.
Matt Hancock, the UK Health Secretary, said new medicines were a “vital weapon” in combating the disease.
He said: “The UK is leading the world in finding and rolling out effective treatments for Covid-19, having identified dexamethasone, which has saved over a million lives worldwide, and tocilizumab.”
“I am committed to boosting the UK’s position as a life science superpower and this new taskforce will help us beat Covid-19 and build back better.”
Patrick Vallance, the government’s chief scientific adviser, said tablets would be a “key tool”.
He said: “They could help protect those not protected by or ineligible for vaccines. They could also be another layer of defence in the face of new variants of concern,”
“The taskforce will help ensure the most promising antivirals are available for deployment as quickly as possible.”
