Published 14:04 IST, August 24th 2020
Trump lauds FDA's authorization of plasma treatment, says 'will save countless lives'
Trump hailed the US Food & Drug Administration (FDA) emergency use as he said that the new therapeutic treatment can “save lives” and is “very effective”.
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Calling it a “historic breakthrough”, US President Donald Trump on August 23 lauded the US Food & Drug Administration (FDA) emergency use authorization of blood plasma therapy for the critical COVID-19 patients. In a live-streamed press conference ahead of the Republican National Convention, Trump hailed the agency and said that the new therapeutic treatment can “save lives” and is “very effective”.
"This is what I've been looking to do for a long time", Trump said at the White House news conference. "Today I'm pleased to make a truly historic announcement in our battle against the ‘China virus’ that will save countless lives", he added.
Emphasizing that the US has the lowest fatality rate from COVID-19 than any major country in the world, Trump said that blood plasma, nevertheless, will decrease mortality and improve recovery. Trump, with his health secretary, Alex Azar, stressed that there’s a noticeable 35 percent better survival rate in hospitalized patients under 80 in just over a month after they were administered with blood plasma therapy. Citing the FDA and other partners’ early set up of Expanded Access Protocol to the treatment, Alex said that patients that were administered early in their disease course within 3 days of being diagnosed with plasma containing high-level antibodies benefited the most.
This is a major advance in the treatment of patients, Secretary Alex said, adding, The FDA’s emergency authorization for convalescent plasma is a milestone achievement in President Trump’s efforts to save lives from COVID-19.
LIVE: President @realDonaldTrump holds a news conference https://t.co/BvYoN0T57c
— The White House (@WhiteHouse) August 23, 2020
EUA criteria for blood plasma met
In a press release, FDA wrote that it was giving an emergency use authorization (EUA) for investigational convalescent plasma for the treatment of COVID-19, citing its effectiveness, based on scientific evidence available. “This product may be effective in treating COVID-19 and that the known and potential benefits of the product outweigh the known and potential risks of the product,” it said. “I am committed to releasing safe and potentially helpful treatments for COVID-19 as quickly as possible in order to save lives. We’re encouraged by the early promising data that we’ve seen about convalescent plasma,” Dr. Hahn said.
(Image Credit: AP)
14:05 IST, August 24th 2020