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State to open Monoclonal Antibody Therapy treatment sites for COVID patients
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The Louisiana Department of Health is opening five new federally supported monoclonal antibody therapy (mAb) treatment sites, according to a press release.
Each site will be open 7 days a week from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m., and they will be able to treat more than 150 patients daily per site.
Opened September 12th:
- Rayne Civic Center: 400 Frog Festival Drive, Rayne, LA 70578
- Leesville Hospital: 810 S. 10th St., Leesville, LA 71496
Opening this week:
- Clinton Alternative Learning Center (Sept. 14): 9414 Plank Road, Clinton, LA 70722
- Rapides Coliseum (Sept. 15): 5600 Coliseum Blvd., Alexandria, LA 71303
- Burton Coliseum (Sept. 16): 7001 Gulf Highway, Lake Charles, LA 70607
The state has been administering monoclonal antibodies since November of 2020. Besides these infusion centers, there are an additional 102 providers statewide that can administer the treatment.
During the week of August 23, LDH says they recorded an all-time high of 7,137 treatments administered.
Monoclonal antibodies are antibodies produced in a laboratory that can mimic the human immune system response to an infection, which could neutralize the virus that causes COVID-19.
In order to be eligible for mAb treatment, the patient must meet all of the following:
- Have a positive test for SARS-CoV-2 (molecular/PCR or antigen)
- Are within 10 days of the start of their symptoms
- Are at least 12 years of age or older and weigh at least 40 kilograms (88 pounds)
- Are at a high risk for progressing to severe COVID-19 and/or hospitalization
- Be referred by a doctor or a healthcare provider for treatment
A map to find other locations with the treatment can be found here: https://protect-public.hhs.gov/pages/therapeutics-distribution. A call center is also available to answer questions: 1-877-332-6585 (English language); 1-877-366-0310 (Spanish language).
The procedure takes at least two hours; it takes 30 minutes to receive the infusion, then 1.5 hours of observation.
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