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FALL RIVER, Mass. (WBZ NewsRadio) — High-risk individuals with COVID now have a new option for treatment.
Governor Charlie Baker announced a new plan today for mobile COVID treatment sites to offer monoclonal antibody treatment for any high-risk individuals who have been exposed to or have COVID. Two sites opened Tuesday, Nov. 30 in Fall River and Holyoke, while another will open in Everett on Friday, Dec. 3.
Patients seeking treatment at one of these facilities are required to have a referral from a health care provider. The treatment is available for free to all patients and is available to all regardless of immigration status or health insurance.
“While the best protection against COVID-19 is vaccination, these therapies can help prevent hospitalization and severe illness for infected or exposed high-risk individuals," Acting Public Health Commissioner Margret Cooke said in a statement.
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The treatment involves a single IV infusion that takes around 20 to 30 minutes and is followed by an hour of patient monitoring, according to a statement from the Governor. The FDA has given emergency use authorization for this treatment for high-risk individuals over the age of 12.
Gothams, a Texas-based emergency management company, is working with the Department of Health to help operate the facilities. The sites are mobile and can be relocated based on demand for treatment, according to the Governor.
WBZ's Kim Tunnicliffe (@KimWBZ) went to the treatment site in Fall River and spoke to a patient who had just gotten treatment.
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