Anti-COVID Drug Now Available For Some Washington Patients

OLYMPIA, WA — Thousands of doses of a new, potentially life-saving COVID-19 treatment have arrived in Washington. Now, the Washington State Department of Health says it is trying to get those doses to the patients who need them the most.

The drug, Evusheld, is a monoclonal antibody treatment that can provide protection against COVID-19, the DOH said. The drug is administered via an injection, and is approved for use in anyone 12-years-old or older before they are infected with COVID. Because doses are limited, however, right now the DOH is only recommending the drug to Washingtonians who are moderately to severely immunocompromised or have had a severe allergic reaction to the COVID-19 vaccine.

"Evusheld is a treatment that could really be a lifesaving game-changer for these two groups of people," said Dr. Tao Sheng Kwan-Gett at a DOH briefing Wednesday. "When it first came out in Dec. 2021, it was very difficult to get because of limited supply, but fortunately supply has improved greatly. We now have thousands of doses of Evusheld that are sitting on the shelves unused, so we want to make sure that everyone who is eligible for Evusheld and could benefit from it knows that it's available."

According to a study from Evusheld manufacturer AstraZeneca, patients who took the medication had a 77 percent lower risk of COVID-19 infection than those who received a placebo over six months.

The state recommend that anyone who is interested in the treatment talk to their health care provider to see if they are eligible. If they are, their doctors can help with providers to find a dose.

Evusheld was cleared for use by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in December, but until now it hasn't seen widespread use in Washington because availability was so limited. Now that more doses have made their way to the Evergreen State, doctors say this could be another tool to finally put the pandemic to bed.

“Statewide, our cases and hospitalizations are moving in the right direction, but there are still deaths from COVID-19 every day, and a rise in cases caused by new variants is always a possibility,” said Tao Sheng Kwan-Gett, MD, MPH, Chief Science Officer. “We want to make sure patients who are immunocompromised know about treatments like Evusheld. It could be a game-changer for those who need extra protection.”

Those who are at high risk for severe disease but who are not eligible for Evusheld can still find other antiviral and monoclonal antibody treatments for COVID-19, though most are available as a prescription only, and have to be taken within the first few days after COVID-19 symptoms set in.

More information on Evusheld can be found at the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services' website.