Hospitals may limit the use of a new Eli Lilly’s antibody treatment that would help COVID-19 patients at risk for serious illness.
The decision comes as hospitals continue dealing with a jump in patients due to spikes in the virus, while managing a tight supply pool. This week, the United States hit 11 million confirmed cases of COVID-19. Nearly 250,000 people have died from the virus.
“There will be a lot of pressure on physicians,” Dr. Adarsh Bhimraj, an infectious disease specialist at the Cleveland Clinic and chairman of the Infectious Diseases Society of America’s guidelines panel, told Reuters.
The antibody treatment, which met the praise of President Trump, was approved last week by the Food and Drug Administration to help high-risk patients diagnosed with COVID-19 avoid hospitalization.
The federal government paid $1,250 per dose for 300,000 doses of the antibody, dubbed bamlanivimab, which experts say could be enough only for one weeks’ worth of people becoming infected.
The FDA authorized the treatment to be prioritized for patients over the age of 65 who have been recently diagnosed with mild-to-moderate forms of the virus. Bamlanivimab is also approved for patients who are obese, are diabetics, or have another risk factor. The agency said the antibody should not be used in hospitalized patients.
The U.S. has the opportunity to buy another 650,000 doses, but hospitals say they expect the antibody treatment will eventually become a commercial product.
Bamlanivimab is given as a one-time infusion and is initially only being distributed to hospitals. Some hospitals are already being set up to treat trial patients, while others are working on logistics.
The FDA is on the brink of approving vaccines determined to be over 90% effective in preventing the virus after announcements by Pfizer and Moderna.
Eli Lilly did not immediately respond to the Washington Examiner’s request for comment.
