Merck to Supply U.S. With Up to 100,000 Doses of Investigational COVID-19 Treatment

Merck has signed a contract to supply up to 100,000 doses of its experimental COVID-19 treatment, MK-7110, to the U.S. government for $356 million, provided the investigational biologic earns the FDA’s approval or Emergency Use Authorization.

Under the agreement with HHS and the Department of Defense — as part of the federal government’s Operation Warp Speed initiative — the first doses of MK-7110 could be ready for shipping early next year and would be offered free to high-risk COVID-19 patients.

Merck acquired MK-7110, formerly CD24Fc, as part of its acquisition in late November of Maryland-based OncoImmune for an initial payment of $425 million (DID, Nov. 24).

The purchase followed promising interim efficacy data from a phase 3 study released in September, in which patients receiving a single dose of the immune modulator showed a 60 percent increase in the likelihood of clinical recovery compared to those given a placebo and a 50 percent decrease in the risk of death or respiratory failure. The ongoing multi-center trial closed enrollment at 243 patients in September.

Merck Research Laboratories President Roger Perlmutter said the company is “pleased to be collaborating” with the U.S. government to advance the manufacture and distribution of MK-7110. ― Jason Scott