Eli Lilly neutralizing antibody gets USFDA emergency use authorization for Covid treatment

Commenting on the same David A. Ricks, Lilly's chairman and CEO said, "This emergency authorization allows us to make bamlanivimab available as a COVID-19 treatment for recently diagnosed, high-risk patients – adding a valuable tool for doctors fighting the now-increasing burden of this global pandemic."

"The rapid development and availability of bamlanivimab could not have been achieved without the relentless work of our Lilly team, collaboration across the industry and the urgent work being done by the government to ensure appropriate allocation to patients who need it the most," Ricks added.

The EUA is based on data from BLAZE-1, a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled Phase 2 study in patients with recently diagnosed mild to moderate COVID-19 in the outpatient setting. Patients treated with bamlanivimab showed reduced viral load and rates of symptoms and hospitalization. In BLAZE-1, frequency and types of adverse events were similar between bamlanivimab and placebo, with the majority being mild to moderate in severity. Infusion reactions and other allergic hypersensitivity events have been reported. The EUA includes a warning for hypersensitivity including anaphylaxis and infusion-related reactions.

"The BLAZE-1 data show bamlanivimab, when given early in the disease course, may help patients clear the virus and reduce COVID-related hospitalizations, supporting our belief that neutralizing antibodies can be an important therapeutic option for patients fighting this virus," said Daniel Skovronsky, M.D., Ph.D.,Lilly's chief scientific officer and president of Lilly Research Laboratories. "We're proud of the speed with which we have been able to bring patients this therapy specifically designed to treat COVID-19. We thank those who have contributed to this medical advancement, particularly the clinical trial investigators and participants around the country."

The FDA grants emergency use authorization to provide availability of a medicine that may help diagnose, treat or prevent a life-threatening disease when no adequate and approved alternatives are available. This use of bamlanivimab is authorized only for the duration of the declaration that circumstances exist justifying the authorization of the emergency use, unless the authorization is terminated or revoked sooner. The authorization is temporary and does not replace the formal review and approval process. Bamlanivimab remains an investigational drug and has not been approved under a Biologics License Application (BLA). Evaluation of its safety and efficacy is ongoing across a range of patient populations impacted by COVID-19. Data from these studies will be used to support a future BLA submission involving bamlanivimab.

Lilly will begin shipping bamlanivimab immediately to AmerisourceBergen, a national distributor, which will distribute it as directed by the U.S. government's allocation program.

Allocation flow of bamlanivimab in the U.S.

The U.S. government has purchased 300,000 doses of bamlanivimab and committed that Americans will have no out-of-pocket costs for the medicine, although healthcare facilities may charge a fee for the product's administration.

The federal government is responsible for the appropriate allocation of bamlanivimab. Weekly allocation decisions will be proportionally based on confirmed COVID-19 cases in each state and territory over the previous seven days, based on data from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Protect data collection platform. Each week, state and territorial health departments will select sites of care (that are accessible and can minimize infection transmission) to receive allocated doses and will provide AmerisourceBergen the list of sites. Sites of care will then confirm their need and AmerisourceBergen will distribute bamlanivimab overnight.

Lilly anticipates manufacturing up to one million doses of bamlanivimab 700 mg by the end of 2020, for use around the world through early next year. Beginning in Q1 2021, the supply of antibody therapy is expected to increase substantially, as additional manufacturing resources come online throughout the year.

Lilly is in discussions with global regulators to make bamlanivimab available around the world. Global allocation will be made based on Lilly guiding principles that aim to ensure access for patients with high unmet need, no matter where they live.

Important Information about bamlanivimab

Bamlanivimab has not been approved by the FDA for any use. It is not known if bamlanivimab is safe and effective for the treatment of COVID-19.

Bamlanivimab is authorized under an Emergency Use Authorization only for the duration of the declaration that circumstances exist justifying the authorization of the emergency use of bamlanivimab under Section 564(b)(1) of the Act, 21 U.S.C § 360bbb-3(b)(1), unless the authorization is terminated or revoked sooner.

Healthcare providers should review the Fact Sheet for information on the authorized use of bamlanivimab and the mandatory requirements of the EUA.