(Reuters) – The emergency approval of blood plasma as a potential COVID-19 treatment by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration is now on hold, the New York Times reported Wednesday, with two administration officials.
A group of top federal health officials including Anthony Fauci have claimed that emerging data on treatment were too weak, the report said, adding that an emergency permit could still be issued in the very near future. (https://nyti.ms/31aFBzb)
The authorization is currently pending as more data is tested, reports the NYT, quoted Clifford Lane, the clinical director at the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH).
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“Per policy, we are unable to comment on the question of whether or not we will take action regarding authorization for emergency use for plasma recovery,” the FDA said.
NIH did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
People who survive an infectious disease like COVID-19 are left with blood plasma that contains antibodies, like proteins that make up the body’s immune system, to fight a virus. This can be passed on to newly infected patients to try to help the recovery.
An FDA authorization for emergency use could provide faster access to therapy for the pandemic.
(Report by Trisha Roy in Bengaluru; Edited by Saumyadeb Chakrabarty)
