COVID-19 antibody treatments could be available in September, ahead of vaccines

COVID-19 antibody therapeutics could be authorized as early as September, with vaccines expected to be available later in the fall, a senior government official said Thursday. In addition to updating the countermeasure timeline, the official discussed the U.S. government’s procurement vaccine deal with Pfizer and BioNTech, calling the $19.50 per dose price “very competitive.”

The official, who declined to be identified, said antibody developers such as Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ:REGN), Eli Lilly and Co. (NYSE:LLY) and AstraZeneca plc (LSE:AZN; NYSE:AZN) will start a series of clinical trials in the next couple of weeks that will follow a common protocol overseen by NIH. ...