November 12, 2020

Dear Friends,

As I told Fox News this week, masks continue to be an important resource in slowing the spread of the coronavirus. Although our country has made tremendous progress in developing therapies to combat COVID-19, our nation remains in a public health emergency. We must continue to find ways to keep ourselves and others safe as we wait for American innovations that will lead us to the other side of the pandemic.

National Updates
The Food and Drug Administration issued an emergency use authorization for bamlanivimab, an investigational monoclonal antibody therapy developed by Eli Lilly and Co. that proved to reduce COVID-19-related hospitalizations in some patients with mild-to-moderate cases of coronavirus.

The Department of Health and Human Services purchased 300,000 doses of bamlanivimab and plans to allocate doses to state and territorial health departments, including 5,780 cases sent to Texas.

The Center for Disease Control and Prevention published considerations for how to celebrate the upcoming winter holidays safely.

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services announced that monoclonal antibody treatments for COVID-19 will be covered for Medicare beneficiaries with no cost-sharing for the duration of the public health emergency.

The Federal Trade Commission sent 20 more warning letters to marketers warning them to stop making unsubstantiated claims that their products can prevent or treat COVID-19.

Texas Updates
Governor Abbott extended the Texas disaster declaration through December 6.

Until next time, this is your doctor’s note.

Congressman Michael C. Burgess, M.D.