The needle-free COVID-19 treatments undergoing testing right now

Hello,

Welcome to Insider Healthcare. I'm healthcare editor Leah Rosenbaum, and today in healthcare news:

• Here are the needle-free COVID-19 treatments undergoing testing right now;
• What you need to know about kids getting the Pfizer vaccine;
• AstraZenca's new antibody drug is the first that's shown to prevent and treat COVID-19.

If you're new to this newsletter, sign up here. Comments, tips? Email me at lrosenbaum@insider.com or tweet @leah_rosenbaum. Let's get to it...

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While prescription weight loss pills can help you lose weight, there is no evidence that OTC diet pills work.

Photographer, Basak Gurbuz Derman/Getty Images

The first-ever COVID-19 pill may be just weeks away. A handful of other pills, inhalers, and nasal sprays also show promise.

• Treating COVID-19 could be simpler soon, thanks to the next generation of treatments.
• These could come in the form of pills, nasal sprays, or inhalers.
• On Monday, Merck asked the FDA to authorize its antiviral pill, which would be the first COVID-19 treatment of its kind.

Read more now>>

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Finley Martin, 14, gets a shot of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine at the First Baptist Church of Pasadena Friday, May 14, 2021, in Pasadena, Calif.

Marcio Jose Sanchez/AP

Kids ages 5-11 could start getting Pfizer's COVID-19 vaccine next month. Here's what to know and how to get your child a shot.

• Pfizer has formally asked the FDA to authorize its COVID-19 vaccine for emergency use among kids ages 5 to 11.
• A doctor who helped run Pfizer's vaccine trial told Insider he wants his kids to be "first in line."
• Here are the answers to common questions parents might have about the vaccine.

Get the latest info>>

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Dan Pelletier, a pharmacy technician specialist at Maine Medical Center, demonstrates the process of preparing antibodies used to treat COVID19 patients.

Derek Davis/Portland Press Herald/Getty Images

AstraZeneca says its COVID-19 drug cuts the risk of severe disease in half. It's the first antibody cocktail shown to both prevent and treat the disease in late-stage trials.

• AstraZeneca said its antibody drug cut the risk of severe COVID-19 in half in a late-stage study.
• The drug, called AZD7442, is a combination of two antibodies given as an injection.
• AstraZeneca said it's the only drug of its kind shown to both prevent and treat COVID-19.

Dive in>>

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More stories we're reading:

• 'Enjoy it': Fauci says it's safe for Americans and their children to trick or treat on Halloween (Insider)
• A new investigation finds that COVAX's global vaccine program was too ambitious (STAT)
• Health care workers at Kaiser Permanente vote to authorize strike, rejecting pay cuts for new hires (Insider)
• Parents are sneaking air quality monitors into school backpacks (New York Times)

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-Leah

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