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legal prescription or to inflate the
price, making it unaffordable for
certain patients,” she says.

“However, in the Mainland, Pax-
lovid as a valid treatment for
COVID-19 is still worth purchas-
ing if it is necessary to help save a
life,” she adds.

*Name changed at interviewee’s re-
quest

Edited by Lesley Lam

Screenshot of a Varsity reporter talking to Sir Yi, a
scalper of Paxlovid, on Wechat.

online platforms at a lower price. and Therapeutics at the Chinese
Platforms like MeiTuan medical University of Hong Kong says Pax-
and JD medical sell the drug at lovid is a helpful medicine to cure
the price of around RMB ¥2500 to COVID-19 with minimal side ef-
RMB ¥2800 (US $360 to US $400), fects.
a few hundred more than the offi-
cial pricing. However, these plat- Wong adds that Paxlovid can be
forms only supply a fixed amount taken by most patients, apart from
of Paxlovid daily, leaving them un- those taking other medicines as
able to fulfil the high demand. there may be drug interactions.

Professor Grace Wong Lai-hung “The chaos in Mainland China
of the Department of Medicine seems unreasonable. It is wrong to
buy or sell any medicine without a
“

It is wrong to buy or sell any medicine

without a legal prescription or to inflate

the price, making it unaffordable for cer-

tain patients,

”