one of the most important things you can do is to make sure you call 811 before you dig. calling 811 to get your lines marked: it s free, it s easy, we come out and mark your lines, we provide you the information so you will dig safely. now to signs of good news on covid. vaccine maker pfizer says a third booster provides strong protection against both regular covid and the new omicron variant. while noting that sticking with just the two doses may not protection against infection over time.
scott and our team on the hill. rachel, we thank you as always. meantime, this other news this friday night and to the pandemic. pfizer announcing its own new covid pill. they say it s taken within days of getting symptoms and pfizer says it cuts down the risk of hospitalization or death by nearly 90%. we also have important news tonight for parents who want to get their children vaccinated this weekend. here s whit johnson. reporter: tonight, a potential new weapon in the fight against covid. vaccine maker pfizer announcing early trial results of its an the i viral pill show it cut the risk of hospitalization or death by 89%. it s really exciting to know that there might be an option to provide patients that could help save their life. reporter: the drug called paxlovid was given to high risk patients within three days of developing covid symptoms. it comes just a month after merck reported its new antiviral drug cut the risk of hospitalization or death in half. while the ne
uiing a better bay area, moving forward, finding solutions, this is abc 7 news. pres. biden: we will not have to go everywhere with a mask. i am not a fan of having a needle in my arm. vaccinations for children ages 5 to 11, appointments booking up all over the bay area and later this hour we see your questions about kids in the covid-19 vaccine. you re watching abc 7 news at 4:00 live on abc 7 news and wherever you stream. pfizer says its experimental covid pill dramatically cut hospitalization and death rates by nearly 90%. it announced it will seek authorization from the fda. 11 states led by missouri filed a lawsuit against the biden administration over its vaccine mandate for private businesses.
the vaccines still represent our safest and most effective way to reduce risk from covid. reporter: unlike monoclonal antibody treatments, which are given through an i.v. at a hospital or clinic, the antiviral pills could be taken at home over five days soon after a person tests positive for covid. merck s drug is on track for potential authorization by the end of the year. pfizer s by early 2022. once we get through this delta wave of infection over the next two months, i think that this therapeutic and the other innovations that we ve seen coming to market really mark the end of the pandemic for the united states. could be a big new weapon in this fight. let s get to whit johnson tonight. i know this is a big weekend ahead for parents across the country when it cops to children 5 to 11 who are finally able to get their vaccinations. and you ve got news on that front tonight. reporter: yeah, david, both wall greens and cvs will start offering covid shots for kids over the week
doctor about pfizer s pill and kids in vaccines and we caught up with hunter pence and got his tonight, breaking news on several fronts as we come on the air. on capitol hill at this hour could president biden be on the vernal of a major victory in his domestic agenda? the push for a potential vote tonight. the vote on the bipartisan infrastructure bill that would create hundreds of thousands of job, build roads and bridges and broadband, already passed by democrats and republicans in the senate. tonight house speaker nancy pelosi urging democrats in the house to vote yes on this tonight. with a procedural vote on the social spending bill, and a promise to move forward on that in the coming weeks, hoping to get progressives on board. we ll go live to rachel scott on the hill tonight. also this evening, the major