Thursday, December 16, 2021
Half a million units
EU orders more new Covid drugs
The portfolio is to be expanded: The EU Commission is buying anti-corona drugs from three different manufacturers. However, the prerequisite is that the funds are also approved.
The EU has secured the delivery of half a million units of newly developed antibody-based Covid drugs. The “Augsburger Allgemeine” reported that the EU Commission had concluded contracts with three pharmaceutical companies for the delivery of therapeutics with so-called monoclonal antibodies. The newspaper cited an answer from EU Health Commissioner Stella Kyriakides to a parliamentary question from FDP MEP Moritz Körner.
Monoclonal antibodies are artificially produced antibodies that can dock onto certain surface structures of the coronavirus. This reduces the virus’ ability to enter human cells. “The contracts provide for the possibility of buying the products after they have received (conditional) EU approval or national emergency approval,” said the EU Commissioner.
The delivery of 55,000 doses of the agent “REGN-COV2” has been agreed with the manufacturer Roche, 220,000 doses of the not yet approved agent sotrovimab with GlaxoSmithKline and 220,000 doses of a combination preparation consisting of Bamlanivimab and Etesevimab with the manufacturer Eli Lilly.
There are also talks with other manufacturers. “The portfolio of promising therapeutics has been expanded to ten,” wrote the EU Commissioner. The FDP Euro MP Körner welcomed the approach: “It is good that the EU Commission is trying hard to correct the mistakes it made when it came to obtaining vaccines,” he told the newspaper.