The Louisiana Department of Health has opened two new federally supported monoclonal antibody therapy (mAb) treatment sites and is on track to open three additional sites this week.
Each site will be open 7 days a week from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. with an ability to serve more than 150 patients daily per site. These are not walk-in sites; your medical provider must schedule your appointment.
The first two federally supported mAb sites that opened on Sunday, September 12 are:
Rayne Civic Center: 400 Frog Festival Drive, Rayne, LA 70578
Leesville Hospital: 810 S. 10th St., Leesville, LA 71496
Three additional sites are set to open this week:
Clinton Alternative Learning Center (Sept. 14): 9414 Plank Road, Clinton, LA 70722
Rapides Coliseum (Sept. 15): 5600 Coliseum Blvd., Alexandria, LA 71303
Burton Coliseum (Sept. 16): 7001 Gulf Highway, Lake Charles, LA 70607
Louisiana received its first allocation of monoclonal antibodies on November 12, 2020, and began administering to positive, symptomatic patients immediately.
LDH’s Bureau of Community Preparedness has led the effort to select qualified contractors who can quickly develop and staff the federally-supported sites — infusion centers — where mAb treatments will be offered. In addition to the federally-supported sites, there are 102 providers statewide that had received mAb shipments they could administer as treatment.
During the week of August 23, LDH recorded an all-time high of 7,137 treatments administered.
Monoclonal antibodies are man-made antibodies produced in a laboratory that can mimic the human immune system response to infection. mAbs are designed to block viral attachment and entry into human cells, thus neutralizing the virus that causes COVID-19.
Patients need to be referred by their doctor or other healthcare provider to a facility that offers mAb therapy such as a hospital or an infusion center. Those without a provider can be referred by an urgent care, community clinic, emergency department, hospitalist, etc.
Patients with a positive COVID-19 viral test should speak with their healthcare provider to determine whether they are eligible for mAb treatment and to discuss potential benefits and side effects.
Monoclonal antibody treatments may be used for the treatment of mild to moderate COVID-19 in adults and pediatric patients who are within 10 days of the start of their symptoms, at least 12 years of age or older and weigh at least 40 kilograms (88 pounds), and are at a high risk for progressing to severe COVID-19 and/or hospitalization.
The federal government has developed a searchable national map that show locations that have received shipments of monoclonal antibody therapeutics under FDA EUA authority, within the past several weeks. The scalable map is at https://protect-public.hhs.gov/pages/therapeutics-distribution [r20.rs6.net].
A call center is also available to answer questions and provide information related to monoclonal antibody therapeutic treatments at 1-877-332-6585 (English language); 1-877-366-0310 (Spanish language).
Eligibility criteria
In order to be eligible for mAb treatment, the patient must meet all of the following:
- Have a positive test for SARS-CoV-2 (molecular/PCR or antigen)Are within 10 days of the start of their symptomsAre at least 12 years of age or older and weigh at least 40 kilograms (88 pounds)Are at a high risk for progressing to severe COVID-19 and/or hospitalization
- Patients are reminded the procedure takes at least two hours. This includes 30 minutes to receive the infusion, then 1.5 hours of observation.
- For patients who are taking medications, they should take their regular doses before treatment. It is also OK to eat before the treatment.
For more information about mAbs, visit this site
