Battling its worst surge in COVID-19 cases, Florida has announced it will use Regeneron’s (NSDQ:REGN) REGEN-COV to protect its population.
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis announced that the state would dispense the monoclonal antibody cocktail through mobile clinics and a rapid response unit in Jacksonville. DeSantis stressed that high-risk individuals, including the elderly, along with people with chronic illness and weak immune systems, should obtain the treatment as soon as they develop symptoms.
DeSantis also said the state would use “strike teams” to deploy the monoclonal antibody in nursing homes.
“We are going to bring a lot more Regeneron into Florida, which I think is important,” DeSantis said in an announcement. “This is the most effective treatment that we’ve yet encountered for people who are infected with COVID-19.”
Clinical trials have demonstrated that the drug is effective at reducing hospitalizations and severe illness stemming from COVID-19.
FDA recently revised the emergency use authorization for REGEN-COV to allow it to be used as post-exposure prophylaxis.
DeSantis said that the REGEN-COV treatment would be helpful as vaccines are providing less of a “shield of immunity” than expected.
He pointed out that Israel is “one of the most vaccinated countries on planet earth,” but the country is having one of the biggest waves of infections during the pandemic.
As of last week, Florida had the highest rate of hospitalized patients in the nation.
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