10 Feb Regeneron’s Community Outreach Efforts to Protect Public Health during Global Pandemic Lauded by Healthcare Ready

Posted at 00:01h in Supply Chain by

It is difficult to envision a more robust and comprehensive response to the challenges presented by the coronavirus pandemic than the actions taken by Regeneron to create and support access to COVID-19 therapeutics. It’s why Healthcare Ready has named Regeneron, a leading biotechnology company, one of our 2021 “Heroes of the Supply Chain.”

Since 2014, Regeneron has been working with the federal government to rapidly respond to emerging global health threats, including a collaboration to advance a medicine for Ebola. The company’s COVID-19-related discovery efforts began early in January 2020, when they swiftly applied 30 years of scientific and technology expertise to produce and evaluate hundreds of virus-neutralizing antibodies in genetically engineered mice as well as from human COVID-19 survivors in order to maximize the pool of potential candidate medicines. 

In six short months, Regeneron was able to progress two potent, complementary, and non-competing monoclonal antibodies (mAbs), casirivimab and imdevimab, into large-scale manufacturing and clinical trials. The medicine, known as REGEN-COV®, has reported positive Phase 3 trial results across the spectrum of COVID-19 infection, including a reduced risk of hospitalization or death by 70% in high-risk non-hospitalized patients and a reduced risk of symptomatic infections by 81% among household contacts of SARS-CoV-2 infected individuals. In November 2020, REGEN-COV®, received its first Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for the treatment of COVID-19 in high-risk non-hospitalized patients and later received an expanded EUA in post-exposure prophylaxis for certain patients.  

As COVID-19 swept through the nation in 2021, a mounting challenge Regeneron faced to raise awareness and deepen education of mAb treatment options in communities with large populations of certain patients who, after being exposed to the coronavirus, were at high risk for progression to severe COVID-19. Successfully doing so required the company to invest significant resources to amplify awareness of mAbs, especially in communities of color that were shown to be disproportionately affected by the virus. 

Regeneron activated large teams to support engagement with these at-risk communities. Their dedicated patient advocacy group worked alongside national affinity and advocacy organizations, such as the National Black Nurses Association among others, to ensure their constituents were educated on the enhanced risks from COVID-19 and were aware of the availability of treatment options.

The company targeted regions of the country being hardest hit by COVID cases and carried their patient advocacy efforts into congregate settings and communities with multigenerational households and those concentrated with front-line workers. They also promoted accessibility by working with the federal government to flexibly reimburse private insurers and Medicaid/Medicare.

Regeneron’s partnership with the National Minority Quality Forum to create a COVID trend predictor tool is yet another example of how they work with community-focused organizations and invest in data-based approaches to drive support in the areas of greatest vulnerabilities from the pandemic. Healthcare Ready is grateful for the enormous efforts of Regeneron, including the staff and leadership, during this past year to support access to therapeutics among providers and communities hardest hit by the health and economic impacts of COVID-19. They are an emblematic “Heroes of the Supply Chain” whose truly inspirational and tireless efforts in 2021 went above and beyond traditional measures to help ensure the health and safety of the nation.

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