
Gottlieb op-ed: Manufacturers need to ramp up production of antibodies as 'Covid insurance policy'
After Pfizer and BioNTech scored the FDA’s emergency use authorization for their mRNA-based Covid-19 shot late last week, hopes are high that one or more vaccines could turn the tide on the pandemic. But vaccines will take time to get into arms, and a former FDA head is calling on drugmakers to double down on making antibody therapies as a “Covid insurance policy” in the meantime.
In a Wall Street Journal column penned less than 48 hours after Pfizer-BioNTech’s EUA, former FDA commish Scott Gottlieb opined that manufacturers have not invested enough resources into stockpiling antibody therapies — especially from Regeneron and Eli Lilly, which have already received EUAs of their own — as a crucial backstop in the US pandemic response.
Unlock this article instantly by becoming a free subscriber.
You’ll get access to free articles each month, plus you can customize what newsletters get delivered to your inbox each week, including breaking news.