By NICK GOSNELL
Hutch Post
HUTCHINSON, Kan. — Dr. Scott Pauly with the Hutchinson Clinic said the clinical evidence on the ground here in Reno County backs the FDA's decision to limit distribution of the Eli Lilly and Regeneron monoclonal antibodies.
"At the point that Omicron becomes the dominant variant, it's rather unethical to be using a treatment that is no longer beneficial," Pauly said. "Deciding where that line is ethically is very difficult. If 50% of the cases are Omicron, you would anticipate by using one of those two agents, you'd have a 50% chance of helping the person. What happened was, Omicron arrived so quick and became the dominant strain so quick that this became just pretty much an on and off decision rather than one that we thought we'd be able to manage."
Now, there is just one type of monoclonal antibody with sufficient efficacy. It is GlaxoSmithKline and Vir Biotechnology's sotrovimab and it is hard to obtain.
"My best advice to everybody is familiarize themselves with their inherent risk of COVID related disease progression," Pauly said. "By disease progression, I'm specifically referencing the need for hospitalization and death. The medical community is quickly becoming aware of where patients fall in that risk stratification and we're having to do so due to the supply issue. We're now in a very unfortunate scenario that I never wanted to be in in my practice, where we're having to prioritize and ration care based on risk as a result of supply issues."
If Hutchinson gets any of that treatment, it's likely to be in the tens of doses and be gone in less than half a day, even with only giving it to those at highest risk.
"This isn't some sort of decision that was made by a legislative body or a bureaucratic entity," Pauly said. "Really, the decision was made by Omicron. It was just a matter of time when it arrived and those previously effective agents would no longer be of much benefit to the community."
If you've made the choice not to be vaccinated, you especially need to monitor if you've been exposed or if you have any symptoms, especially if you are over 65, or if you are under 65 and have even minimal health issues.
"We're seeing unvaccinated persons require hospitalization at a nine to ten times greater rate than the vaccinated," Pauly said. "Of benefit to the vaccinated, even if they have a number of health concerns, as long as they are not severely immunosuppressed, the vaccines stimulate their immune system to the point that what they gain negates their health risks."
Pauly also said if you are due for a COVID-19 booster, get it.