The Forgotten Stage of Human Progress
Invention is easily overrated, and implementation is often underrated.
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What if we invented a technology to save the planet—and the world refused to use it?
This haunting hypothetical first popped into my head when I was reading about Paxlovid, the antiviral drug developed by Pfizer. If taken within a few days of infection with COVID-19, Paxlovid reduces a vulnerable adult’s chance of death or hospitalization by 90 percent. Two months ago, the White House promised to make it widely available to Americans. But today, the pills are still hard to find, and many doctors don’t know to prescribe them.
