Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Covid Antibody Drugs Shown To Cut Risk Of Death, Serious Illness In Trials
The Wall Street Journal: Covid-19 Antibody Drug Effective In Study, GlaxoSmithKline And Vir Say
A monoclonal-antibody drug reduced hospitalizations or death from Covid-19 by 85% compared with a placebo in a clinical trial, said Vir Biotechnology Inc. and GlaxoSmithKline PLC, the drug’s developers. Based on the positive results, the companies said Wednesday they will immediately ask health regulators in the U.S. and other countries to authorize the therapy, which would add to the arsenal of Covid-19 treatments that help keep infected people out of hospitals. (Walker, 3/10)
Fox News: Eli Lilly COVID-19 Drug Combo Cuts Risk Of Hospitalizations, Deaths By 87%: Study
A combination of two Eli Lilly antibody drugs cut the risk of COVID-19-related hospitalizations and deaths by 87%, the company announced Wednesday, further upholding dosing already authorized by the Food and Drug Administration. The findings draw from a BLAZE-1 Phase 3 cohort with 769 mild-to-moderate coronavirus patients aged 12 and up at high-risk of progressing to severe disease. There were 15 "events" like hospitalizations or deaths in the placebo group, and four "events" in a group of patients taking 700 mg of bamlanivimab and 1400 mg of etesevimab together, "representing an 87 percent risk reduction," Lilly announced. (Rivas, 3/10)
Crain's Detroit Business: Demand Increasing For Infusion Treatment To Lessen COVID-19 Hospitalizations
More than 4,000 people testing positive for COVID-19 in Michigan have been treated with one of the two approved monoclonal antibody infusion treatments at more than 100 hospitals, pharmacies and urgent care centers that are administering the Eli Lilly and Regeneron cocktail therapies. Early results show hospitalization rates at about 5% compared to 10% to 15% rates in similar high-risk populations, according to the state Department of Health and Human Services. (Greene, 3/10)
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CIDRAP: Pneumococcal Vaccine Associated With Lower COVID-19 Risk
People 65 and older who received the 13-valent (13-strain) pneumococcal conjugate vaccine (PCV13) had lower COVID-19 diagnoses, hospitalizations, and deaths, reports a study published yesterday in The Journal of Infectious Diseases. If patients received antibiotics within the past 90 days, though, the relationship weakened. The researchers looked at 541,033 elderly adults in the Kaiser Permanente Southern California healthcare system from Mar 1 to Jul 22, 2020. The vast majority (83.4%) received PCV13, and recipients were more likely to be older, have more comorbidities, and partake in healthcare services more often. Overall, 3,677 COVID-19 cases in the study cohort (0.7%) led to 1,075 hospitalizations (0.2%) and 334 deaths (0.06%). (3/10)
NPR: Convalescent Plasma For COVID-19 Turns Out To Be A Bust
More than half a million Americans have received an experimental treatment for COVID-19 called convalescent plasma. But a year into the pandemic, it's not clear who, if anyone, benefits from it. That uncertainty highlights the challenges scientists have faced in their attempts to evaluate COVID-19 drugs. On paper, treatment with convalescent plasma makes good sense. The idea is to take blood plasma from people who have recovered from COVID-19 and infuse it into patients with active infections. The antibodies in the donated plasma, in theory, would help fight the virus. (Harris, 3/10)
Stat: Antibiotic Prescribing During Covid-19 Raises Concern About Drug Resistance
Amid rising worries over antibiotic resistance, a new study suggests the drugs were overprescribed to patients during the first six months of the Covid-19 pandemic. In 96% of the cases, antibiotics were given to patients before a bacterial infection was confirmed. To wit, a first antibiotic was prescribed at the time of admission or within the first 48 hours of hospitalization. Yet such prescribing implies a degree of guesswork, since it can typically take 48 hours or more to confirm a bacterial infection, according to The Pew Charitable Trusts, which conducted the analysis. (Silverman, 3/10)
