HHS said June 25 it is immediately pausing distribution of bamlanivimab and etesevimab, the antibodies used in combination to treat COVID-19, in the U.S. until further notice. Analyses found the antibody drugs used in combination weren’t effective against the gamma variant, first found in Brazil, or the beta variant, first found in South Africa, according to the Journal.
The two variants account for more than 11 percent of COVID-19 cases in the U.S., according to CDC data.
HHS had already stopped shipping the drugs to at least nine states, including Arizona, California and Washington, because of concerns about their efficacy against virus variants.
Eli Lilly said in a statement to the Journal that it’s working with governments to make sure the antibodies are still available to the “appropriate patients.”
The FDA recommends providers use Regeneron’s drug REGEN-COV or Vir Biotechnology and GlaxoSmithKlin’s drug sotrovimab instead of Eli Lilly’s antibody cocktail, the Journal reported. Both have been shown to be effective against virus variants.
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