The Biden administration on Friday announced an agreement to purchase 100,000 doses of Eli Lilly’s monoclonal antibody cocktail, which was recently authorized by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
The move will increase the available supply of one of the few proven treatments for people with COVID-19. Antibody drugs are authorized for use in patients at high risk of serious illness but who are not yet hospitalized.
Under the agreement, the federal government will pay $ 210 million for the initial purchase of up to 100,000 courses of treatment, which is a combination of the drug bamlanivimab, which was approved in November last year for patients at high risk of COVID-19. with a second drug known as etesevimab.
The combination has received emergency use authorization earlier this month, after data showed that it reduced the risk of hospitalization and death by 70%.
The agreement includes the flexibility to buy up to a total of 1.2 million doses by November, but will likely depend on the evolution of the pandemic in the next few months.
The government has already committed to purchase a total of 1,450,000 doses of bamlanivimab alone, which includes more than 1 million doses that have been administered and an agreement to deliver an additional 450,000 doses by the end of March.
The government has said it will provide neutralizing antibodies at no cost to patients, although medical institutions may charge a fee for administering the product.
To receive antibody therapy, patients should contact their healthcare provider.
Another antibody treatment manufactured by Regeneron is also authorized by the FDA. Regeneron provides the federal government with up to 1.5 million doses.
But despite their effectiveness and federal efforts to encourage use, antibody therapy has seen poor demand.
The offer was limited at the beginning and ensuring that the drug reaches patients is a complex undertaking. Because they are infusion drugs, the antibodies must be administered in an appropriate setting. The medication window is small, and patients need a quick diagnosis.
Driving patients to an infusion center or hospital is difficult, especially since the out-of-control pandemic puts massive pressure on hospitals and health care workers. Experts have called for a better system to ensure that drugs can reach the patients who need them most.
Monoclonal antibody treatments received an increase in publicity last fall, when they were given to the former. President Trump
Donald Trump Jr. calls the accusations dropped by Bruce Springsteen a “liberal privilege.” Schiff sees challenges for intelligence committee, community in the shadow of Trump McConnell says he will support Trump as a candidate for GOP 2024 MORE when he became infected last fall.
Treatments were also given to Republicans and Trump’s allies, as well as his personal lawyer Rudy Giuliani
Rudy Giuliani, CEO of MyPillow, says boycotts have cost him M Dominion is targeting Mike Lindell on MyPillow with a defamation lawsuit.3B Trump’s legal issues may not have passed, despite the Senate’s acquittal, former governor of New Jersey. Chris Christie
Chris Christie: Cancun’s fallout threatens to inflict lasting damage on Cruz On The Trail: The political dangers of the former Snowmageddon-Christie assistant are eliminated by the Supreme Court in the “Bridgegate” scandal running for local office MORE and former Secretary for Housing and Urban Development Ben Carson
Ben Carson launches Trump Conservative think tank “Report of 1776” published in MLK Day, receives strong reaction Biden has a chance to win over conservative Christians MORE.