SAN DIEGO (KGTV) – There is only one authorized treatment designed to keep high-risk COVID-19 patients out of the hospital, but hundreds of thousands of doses of the same experimental therapy given to former President Donald Trump sit in the Save.
Flooded hospitals were slow to administer monoclonal antibodies because of what an expert infectious disease called a ‘perfect storm’ of complicating factors. Some healthcare providers have refused doses altogether.
These challenges include limiting staff and space during the increase in cases, the length of time required to administer an infusion, and the short-term care providers need to reach patients eligible for treatment.
Nevertheless, federal and state health officials called on providers to expand access to the experimental therapy, which showed promise in the early stages of trials. One clinical trial on the monoclonal antibody cocktail made by Regeneron found that hospitalizations dropped to 3 percent compared to 9 percent in the group that received a placebo.
At the San Diego Family Health Centers, they converted a dentist’s office and an unused medical space into a monoclonal antibody infusion clinic.
“My feeling is that we must do everything we can to prevent our hospitals from being overwhelmed,” said Dr. Christian Ramers, assistant director, said.
Dr. Ramers said he and two assistants administer about five patients a day with laboratory antibodies four days a week. They plan to scale up the surgery to serve up to eight patients a day, but the low-income patient clinic is already doing more infusions than some large hospitals.
‘Interestingly enough, supply is not the issue. “This is another case where there are hundreds of doses of this drug in refrigerators throughout San Diego County,” he said.
Late last month, the Department of Health and Human Services said 378,000 doses of monoclonal antibodies had been distributed to hospitals and clinics in the country. Only 20 percent of the supply was used.
Regeneron and a second company, Eli Lilly, obtained emergency permits in November to treat people in outpatients at high risk for serious illness before admitting a person to a hospital.
The drug itself is free, with thousands of doses paid for by the federal government.
‘Everyone thought it would be cleaned up as soon as they went to the centers. But alas, due to a perfect storm of things. It didn’t really pick up that much, ”said dr. Peter Chin-Hong, an infectious disease specialist at UC San Francisco, said.
Some hospitals have avoided treatment because there are limited data. The National Institutes of Health says there is “insufficient data” to recommend for or against the drug. Clinical trials are still ongoing.
The infusions take two hours for the patient, plus extra preparation time to thaw and mix the solution. It is a challenge at a moment that staff is strict.
“It’s currently in the middle of a boom and there are not that many people moving around,” Dr Chin-Hong said. He said UCSF does about two to four infusions a day.
There is also a narrow period of time to administer the treatment. According to the FDA’s authorization for emergency use, qualified patients must receive the antibodies within ten days after their symptoms appear.
Dr. Ramers said the average patient can wait a few days to get a test and then wait a few more to get results. By that time, “you are already pressing at the end of the window, so a lot of work needs to be done to identify people quickly.”
Family health centers have developed an algorithm to scan the positive tests for the best candidates so that they can contact the patients quickly and make an appointment for the long treatment.
They are targeted at people over the age of 65 or with risk factors such as obesity, diabetes, lung disease and other conditions.
Due to the need to quickly analyze medical history and test results, Family Health Centers can only offer monoclonal antibodies to existing patients who are tested positive at one of the clinics, said Dr. Ramers said.
But he said other providers are offering the treatment. Patients just need to know to ask.