More than 2 dozen drugmakers to make Merck’s COVID-19 pill

GENEVA (AP) — A U.N.-backed group says it has signed agreements with more than two dozen generic drug makers to produce versions of Merck’s coronavirus pill to supply 105 developing countries. In a statement on Thursday, the Medicines Patent Pool said the deals would allow drug companies to make both the raw ingredients for molnupiravir or the finished product itself. Molnupiravir was developed by Merck and Ridgeback Therapeutics and has been reported to cut the hospitalization rate in half among patients with early signs of COVID-19. The pill was authorized in recent months in Britain, the European Union and the U.S.