Monoclonal antibodies are free and effective against covid-19, but few people are getting them

Monoclonal antibodies are free to patients and there have been almost no side effects.

Maker of the only authorized, free monoclonal antibodies, said it is reaching fewer than 30% of eligible patients, up from fewer than 5% a month ago.

James Hildreth, president and CEO of Meharry Medical College in Nashville, Tenn., said access to monoclonal antibodies has been an issue for many people in vulnerable communities hit hardest by the pandemic - one of the reasons he found use of the treatment by Abbott unjust.

The treatment is effective within ten days after symptoms appear, according to the Food and Drug Administration, which is why it's critical that people seek treatment as soon as they receive a positive test result.

Regeneron's drug is a cocktail of two monoclonal antibodies, casirivimab and imdevimab.

Another single monoclonal antibody, sotrovimab, made by GlaxoSmithKline and Vir Biotechnology, was given emergency use authorization in May. It is not free to patients, with a wholesale acquisition cost of $2,100 per dose.

"The monoclonal antibodies work. They are safe, they're free, they keep people out of the hospital, and help keep them alive," Marcella Nunez-Smith, chair of the government's COVID-19 Health Equity Task Force, said at a briefing Aug. 12.

https://news.yahoo.com/monoclonal-antibodies-free-effective-against-152854132.html