By: Sandy Eller

With COVID rates continuing to spike, a pair of communal organizations in Flatbush are joining forces to urge those who test positive for the virus to undergo a treatment with potentially lifesaving benefits that has been approved for emergency usage by the Food and Drug Administration.

Flatbush Hatzolah and the Sephardic Community Alliance have been spreading the word about outpatient monoclonal antibody infusions currently available at multiple hospitals in New York, New Jersey and Florida.  A standardized treatment that is effective when administered within the first few days after a PCR test yields positive results, monoclonal antibodies are being used nationwide for patients in certain high risk categories.  Over the past two weeks, Hatzolah of Flatbush and the Sephardic Community Alliance have sent approximately 400 newly diagnosed COVID patients who meet eligibility criteria for monoclonal antibody infusions and are reporting that virtually all responded positively and recuperated well at home, the one exception an 85 year old woman who doctors believe began taking the antibody cocktail outside of the recommended window of treatment.

Flatbush Hatzolah member Alan Esses explained that monoclonal antibodies provide COVID antibodies before the body can begin producing them on its own in response to the virus.

“These scientifically produced antibodies given in day two, three or four can stop the disease in its tracks,” explained Esses.  “It is a simple procedure that can be done in just a few hours and it is really keeping people out of the hospital.”

The intravenous treatment is currently available in New York City at New York Community Hospital, Maimonides Medical Center and Mt. Sinai, in the New Jersey area at Monmouth Medical Center and Jersey Shore Medical Center and in Lakewood at Kimbal Medical Center, in Monsey at Good Samaritan Hospital, in Teaneck at Holy Name Medical Center and in the Miami area at Mt. Sinai of Miami Beach, Memorial Hospital and Aventura Hospital and Medical Center, with an expanded list available here.

Those eligible for monoclonal antibodies include individuals 65 and older who are overweight, have chronic kidney disease, diabetes or are immunocompromised and those 55 and over with cardiovascular disease, hypertension or chronic respiratory disease.  Monoclonal antibody treatment is also approved for 12 to17 year olds who are extremely overweight, have sickle cell disease, certain types of heart disease, cerebral palsy, asthma, chronic respiratory disease or a medical-related technological dependence.

Esses said that as recently as a month ago, those infected with COVID were finding their conditions steadily worsening for as long as eight or nine days, with some contracting pneumonia and needing to be hospitalized.  He categorized monoclonal antibody infusions as a game changer, with patients feeling better within days and Hatzolah of Flatbush conducted a Zoom training session this past week to educate 200 of its members on the treatment’s benefits.  Esses estimated that a minimum of six to ten people in the Flatbush community are undergoing the treatment each day, with most home within three hours and he cautioned anyone who has undergone the infusion to continue being vigilant about social distancing, masking and handwashing.

“We want to get the word out to everyone in our community,” said Esses.  “If you have COVID, and you meet the eligibility criteria, don’t wait until you are really sick to seek treatment. Speak up, go the ER, get the infusion and then go home and get better.”

With monoclonal antibody infusions being offered nationwide, anyone receiving a positive result on a COVID PCR test should contact their local hospital or bikur cholim organization to learn if the treatment is available nearby.

(YWN World Headquarters – NYC)