Antibody mix earns top bill. The cabinet has reduced the AstraZeneca vaccine budget in favour of purchasing the pharmaceutical giant's long-acting antibody treatments instead. Bangkok Post

 

Antibody mix earns top bill

The cabinet has reduced the AstraZeneca vaccine budget in favour of purchasing the pharmaceutical giant's long-acting antibody treatments instead.

Government spokesman Thanakorn Wangboonkongchana said the cabinet has approved a reduced order of 35.4 million doses of vaccine, down from 60 million, lowering the budget from 19 billion baht to 11 billion baht. The saving will be put towards an order of 257,500 doses of long-acting antibody (LAAB).

LAAB, branded as Evusheld, was developed by AstraZeneca and registered in June last year. It was authorised by the US Food and Drug Administration for emergency use in the US on Dec 8 last year. Evusheld is a combination of two long-acting antibodies (tixagevimab and cilgavimab) and works on the principle of "passive immunisation". It is administered as two injections, with protection lasting for at least six months.

It is for people with poor immune systems who cannot be vaccinated, such as those on dialysis, transplant patients and people with immune disorders, and is estimated to be 83% effective, he said.

AstraZeneca has already delivered 13.2 million doses of vaccine during the first quarter of this year and will distribute 11.2 million more by year's end, with an order of 11 million already having been agreed for next year.