WHICH PROVIDERS PRESCRIBE ANTIVIRALS FOR COVID-19 TREATMENT IN THE US?
Author(s)
Maria M. Fernandez, PhD, MBA1, Iqra Arham, PharmD, RPh1, Domenick Francis, PharmD, RPh1, Joshua Coulter, MA1, Leila G. Lackey, PhD1, Brett Hauber, PhD1, Gurinder S. Sidhu, MD, MHA, MBA2, Shoaib Khan, MD1, Lewis Kopenhafer, BA3, William You, MSPH3, Kathleen Beusterien, MPH3, Martine Maculaitis, MA, PhD3, Soohyun Hwang, PhD, MPH3, Michael DiGiovanna, DO4, Ruth Mokgokong, PhD5;
1Pfizer, New York, NY, USA, 2Pfizer, Los Angeles, CA, USA, 3Oracle Life Sciences, Austin, TX, USA, 4Division of Primary Care, NY Health, New York, NY, USA, 5Pfizer, Tadworth, United Kingdom
1Pfizer, New York, NY, USA, 2Pfizer, Los Angeles, CA, USA, 3Oracle Life Sciences, Austin, TX, USA, 4Division of Primary Care, NY Health, New York, NY, USA, 5Pfizer, Tadworth, United Kingdom
OBJECTIVES: Despite the availability of effective COVID-19 antivirals, many high-risk patients remain untreated, contributing to avoidable patient- and system-level burden. To understand factors influencing prescribing behavior, we examined characteristics of healthcare providers (HCPs) who do and do not prescribe COVID-19 antivirals to eligible outpatients.
METHODS: Between July and September 2025, US primary care (PC), urgent care (UC), and emergency department (ED) HCPs completed a survey on antiviral prescribing practices. Data collected included demographics (age, gender, race), years in practice, years post-residency, practice setting and location, percentage of time spent in direct patient care, number of outpatients with COVID-19 seen, and percentage prescribed antivirals. Based on the proportion of outpatients with COVID-19 to whom they prescribed antivirals in the past 12 months, HCPs were categorized as low-prescribers (LP; 0-20.0%), medium-prescribers (MP; >20.0-62.0%), or high-prescribers (HP; >62.0%).
RESULTS: Among 684 HCPs (257 PC, 201 UC, 226 ED), 25% were HP, 44% MP, and 31% LP. Compared with LP and MP, HP were more often aged ≥45 years (59% vs. 44%, and 49%, respectively) and had ≥10 years of practice experience (78% vs. 64% and 63%, respectively). HP were also more likely to practice in primary care (p<0.001), to perceive current antivirals as more effective (p<0.001), and to have treated more outpatients with COVID-19 in the prior 12 months (median=150; range: 100-300; p<0.001). In contrast, LP were more likely to be ED physicians (62% vs. 41% MP and 25% HP; p<0.001).
CONCLUSIONS: HCPs with ≥10 years of experience, practicing primarily in PC, who have treated ≥100 outpatients with COVID-19 in the prior year were more likely to prescribe antivirals to eligible patients. ED physicians were less likely to prescribe antivirals. These findings highlight key provider characteristics that can inform targeted education and outreach for providers to increase appropriate antiviral use among high-risk patients.
METHODS: Between July and September 2025, US primary care (PC), urgent care (UC), and emergency department (ED) HCPs completed a survey on antiviral prescribing practices. Data collected included demographics (age, gender, race), years in practice, years post-residency, practice setting and location, percentage of time spent in direct patient care, number of outpatients with COVID-19 seen, and percentage prescribed antivirals. Based on the proportion of outpatients with COVID-19 to whom they prescribed antivirals in the past 12 months, HCPs were categorized as low-prescribers (LP; 0-20.0%), medium-prescribers (MP; >20.0-62.0%), or high-prescribers (HP; >62.0%).
RESULTS: Among 684 HCPs (257 PC, 201 UC, 226 ED), 25% were HP, 44% MP, and 31% LP. Compared with LP and MP, HP were more often aged ≥45 years (59% vs. 44%, and 49%, respectively) and had ≥10 years of practice experience (78% vs. 64% and 63%, respectively). HP were also more likely to practice in primary care (p<0.001), to perceive current antivirals as more effective (p<0.001), and to have treated more outpatients with COVID-19 in the prior 12 months (median=150; range: 100-300; p<0.001). In contrast, LP were more likely to be ED physicians (62% vs. 41% MP and 25% HP; p<0.001).
CONCLUSIONS: HCPs with ≥10 years of experience, practicing primarily in PC, who have treated ≥100 outpatients with COVID-19 in the prior year were more likely to prescribe antivirals to eligible patients. ED physicians were less likely to prescribe antivirals. These findings highlight key provider characteristics that can inform targeted education and outreach for providers to increase appropriate antiviral use among high-risk patients.
Conference/Value in Health Info
2026-05, ISPOR 2026, Philadelphia, PA, USA
Value in Health, Volume 29, Issue S6
Code
HSD82
Topic
Health Service Delivery & Process of Care
Disease
SDC: Infectious Disease (non-vaccine), SDC: Respiratory-Related Disorders (Allergy, Asthma, Smoking, Other Respiratory)