LANSING, MI (WKZO AM/FM) – Saying it was a treatment used on former President Donald Trump that may have saved his life when he was stricken with COVID-19, Governor Gretchen Whitmer and the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services have announced the state is working to expand the use of a medical intervention designed to significantly reduce hospitalizations and deaths.
At press conference Wednesday afternoon, the Governor said the treatment involves additional doses of monoclonal antibodies being made available to providers and requests to providers to expand the number of infusion sites in the state.
Monoclonal antibodies (mAb) are laboratory-produced molecules that can restore, enhance or mimic the immune system’s attack on cells. mAb targets different parts of the virus and prevents it from bonding with cells in the body, effectively neutralizing it. The Governor said clinical trials have shown promising data that this therapy works for the treatment of COVID-19 in patients who are at high risk for progressing to severe symptoms and/or hospitalization, including older Michiganders.
Additional information on monoclonal antibody therapy can be found at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Combating COVID website and Michigan.gov/COVIDTherapy.
