- Dr. Anthony Fauci said that he’s on his second course of Paxlovid after testing positive again for Covid-19
- According to Pfizer’s own data, the drug is limited in its abilities to fight Covid-19 in a vaccinated person
- The CDC issued a warning about the potential for Covid-19 rebound symptoms after taking Paxlovid in May 2022
- The warning noted that none of the reported rebound cases saw patients suffer a severe case of Covid-19, though Fauci described his symptoms as ‘much worse’
- A UC San Diego study found that patients who were experiencing Covid rebound symptoms suffered because Paxlovid did not get to enough infected cells
- At the same conference where he announced the rebound, Fauci called for an ‘aggressive’ national vaccine campaign
Dr. Anthony Fauci confirmed on Tuesday that he is suffering from ‘Covid rebound’ symptoms after being treated with Paxlovid.
Paxlovid, a drug that was anointed as America’s silver bullet against COVID-19 by some health officials and even President Joe Biden, may not have any effectiveness for people that are already vaccinated, according its manufacturer Pfizer’s own data.
Fauci, 81, broke the news while speaking remotely at the Foreign Policy Global Health Forum.
Earlier this month, Fauci tested positive for the virus with mild symptoms including fatigue. As his symptoms got slightly worse, Fauci began a five day course of Paxlovid.
Following that course, Fauci said that he tested negative for the virus three days in a row. He decided to test again on the fourth day. The result came back positive.
In May, the Centers for Disease Control issued a formal warning regarding a Covid-19 rebound as result of a course of Paxlovid.
The agency said that some patients who were prescribed Paxlovid suffered a recurrence of symptoms or tested positive for Covid between two and eight days after recovery.
The CDC announcement said that there was not enough data to make a conclusion on the cause for the rebound. The agency noted that none of the reported rebound cases saw patients suffer a severe recurrence.
In his announcement about his Covid rebound, Fauci said that his symptoms were ‘much worse’ after he tested positive for the second time.
Dr. Anthony Fauci said that he first tested positive for Covid-19 on June 14 and began his first course of Paxlovid on June 15
Dr. Anthony Fauci testifies virtually during a Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee hearing to examine an update on the ongoing Federal response to COVID-19 on June 16
According to a June 22 University of California San Diego School of Medicine study, Covid-19 rebound symptoms after a course of Paxlovid are caused because not enough of the drug was getting to infected cells to stop all viral replication.
The study refers to this as a lack of exposure to the drug.
The day after that study was published, Pfizer published its Phase 2/3 Paxlovid trial data.
The data analyzed Paxlovid’s ability to prevent hospitalization or death depending on a person’s vaccination status and individual risk profile.
It found that a fully vaccinated person with little personal risk had little to gain from using the drug.
Paxlovid is to be used by a Covid positive person to limit symptoms and prevent them from becoming serious enough to require intense medical care.
The drug received emergency use authorization in late 2021.
Biden has propped it up during his 2022 State of the Union address as one of the keys to America’s Covid response, even offering it for free to anyone who tests positive for the virus.
Pfizer’s own study found that a fully vaccinated person with little personal risk had little to gain from using the drug
At the 2022 State of the Union, Biden said: ‘If you get COVID-19, the Pfizer pill reduces your chances of ending up in the hospital by 90 percent.’
‘I’ve ordered more pills than anyone in the world has. Pfizer is working overtime to get us a million pills this month and more than double that next month.’
He announced the ‘Test to Treat’ program, where Americans who tested positive for the virus at pharmacies around the country could quickly get a course of the drugs at no cost.
The federal government even began to roll out ‘Test to Treat’ centers around the country, with Rhode Island launching the nation’s first in late May.
Under this program, any American, no matter their vaccination status or risk profile, would be offered the drugs if they wanted them.
At the same conference where he announced his Covid-19 rebound, Fauci also said: ‘It is not the time to be at odds with each other, it’s a time to be pulling together against the common enemy, which is the [Covid-19] virus.’
The Foreign Policy Global Health public forum is ‘a platform for global health experts to discuss the most pressing issues and developing trends in international public health,’ according to the organization.
Fauci also said that he felt as though there are more people with Covid-19 than is being publicly reported.
Fauci said: ‘I would say [the amount of COVID infections are] at least a couple fold if not more than what’s reported… so many people that I know personally have gotten infected, been minimally symptomatic, and never reported their antigen positivity.’
The president’s Covid tsar also called for an ‘aggressive’ public vaccine campaign saying: ‘If you locked down only for the sake of locking down, sooner or later the virus is going to enter or re-enter into your country.’
He continued: ‘The purpose should be to get a very aggressive vaccination campaign to all citizens.’
At the Foreign Policy Global Health Forum, Fauci said that he tested positive, then negative, then positive again
In his appearance at the Foreign Policy forum, Fauci called for an ‘aggressive’ vaccine effort
Research has shown that Paxlovid is effective in fighting Covid-19 but it has shown limited capabilities in fighting the virus in vaccinated persons
The Omicron subvariants BA.4 and BA.5 are the most prevalent strain of Covid-19 in the U.S., the C.D.C. estimates
Fauci said on Tuesday: ‘It is not the time to be at odds with each other, it’s a time to be pulling together against the common enemy, which is the Covid-19 virus
It remains unclear from where Fauci contracted the virus, but his announcement comes just two days after Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra announced a breakthrough case of COVID.
Fauci was last seen in person in public on June 3, when he served as the keynote speaker for City College of New York’s graduation ceremony.
The diagnosis marked the second time in three weeks Becerra, 64, contracted it, after being vaccinated and boosted.
He was reportedly having mild symptoms and will also continue to isolate.
‘This morning in Sacramento, U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra tested positive for COVID-19 after taking an antigen test. He is fully vaccinated and boosted against COVID-19 and is experiencing mild symptoms,’ the agency said in a statement on Monday.
‘He will continue to perform his duties as HHS secretary, working in isolation.’
‘Secretary Becerra has not been considered a close contact of President Biden or Vice President Harris, as defined by the CDC. The Secretary remains engaged with the duties of his office from isolation, and is eager to return to in-person meetings, as quickly as possible.’