Now that the FDA has ended the use of most monoclonal antibody therapies for COVID-19, forcing the state to shut down treatment sites across Florida, COVID patients have a few other treatment options available, but they may be hard to access.
There is just one monoclonal antibody treatment that is authorized to treat COVID-19 due to its effectiveness against the Omicron variant. It's called Sotrovimab, and it's in short supply.
Infectious Disease Specialist Dr. Larry Bush told CBS12 News that hospitals have been getting small shipments of Sotrovimab, and patients interested in the therapy should call local hospitals to find it.
That's also the advice from the Florida Department of Health, which told CBS12 News to check hospitals, clinics, and ERs to see if they have the monoclonals on hand.
There are also antiviral pills now available to treat COVID-19: one from Merck called Molnupiravir and one from Pfizer called Paxlovid.
Those pills are also in short supply. A check of the state treatment locator website shows just one pharmacy in Palm Beach County is carrying them: a Publix on Military Trail. There are no pharmacies on the Treasure Coast carrying the medication.
"We are told by the manufacturers that they are going to step that up quickly, but we've been told that before," said Bush. "I think that's been the real problem. We say get ready, go get this, And then it's not there to be gotten."
On top of low availability, there's a short window a patient can access the drugs. They need to be diagnosed in the early stages of COVID and get a prescription from a doctor in order to get the antivirals.
Bush said getting the COVID vaccine and a booster shot is the best form of protection available.
For the immune compromised who may not respond well to the vaccine, there's an additional preventative measure: taking a monoclonal called Evushield. The state has a several locations offering Evushield listed on its treatment website.