DoH Announces Expansion Of Eligibility For Covid 19 Treatment

The Department of Health has announced an expansion of eligibility criteria for Covid 19 treatment to include additional goups, following updated guidance from the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE).

The DoH has extended eligibility for treatment with Paxlovid (nirmatrelvir plus ritonavir) to include additional groups.

Paxlovid is now also available to adults who do not need oxygen therapy for COVID-19 and who:

• are aged 85 years and over

• have end-stage heart failure and have a long-term ventricular assistance device (a mechanical device that helps the heart pump blood)

• are on the organ transplant waiting list • are aged 70 years and over, or who have a body mass index (BMI) of 35 kg/m2 or more, diabetes or heart failure, and who are: resident in a care home or already in hospital.

By June 2025, Paxlovid will also be available for adults who do not need oxygen therapy for COVID-19 and who:

• are aged 70 years and over

• have a BMI of 35 kg/m2 or more

• have diabetes

• have heart failure.

Those people eligible for a COVID-19 treatment should stay alert to the symptoms of COVID-19 and can access rapid lateral flow tests to keep at home.

Information on all current patient groups eligible for treatment and further advice on how to access treatment and lateral flow tests is available on the NI Direct Treatment for Coronavirus (COVID-19) webpage.