Australia has closed a deal for 300,000 courses of an antiviral pill showing promising signs of slashing COVID-19 deaths and hospitalisations. Molnupiravir is still being trialled in the US and is yet to gain regulatory authorisation. But the federal government has reached an agreement with pharmaceutical companies Merck Sharp and Dohme to supply 300,000 courses should the pill be given the green light by Australia’s medicines regulator. It could be made available as early as the first quarter of 2022. Prime Minister Scott Morrison said the drug would join other COVID-19 treatments including sotrovimab and remdesivir already available in Australia. “While our vaccination rate continues to climb, we’ve been investing in and closely monitoring research into COVID-19 treatments and we are securing supply of promising treatments,” he said. Molnupiravir is taken twice a day for five days by adults with mild or moderate disease. It does not need to be …