Overview

• RSV infections are rising sharply in some parts of the country, nearly filling hospital emergency departments in Georgia, Texas and some other states.
• The CDC has released an additional 77,000 doses of a monoclonal antibody treatment designed to safeguard infants against the respiratory infection RSV.
• The drug, called nirsevimab and sold under the brand name Beyfortus, is the first preventive antibody treatment widely available to protect healthy infants against respiratory syncytial virus, the No. 1 cause of infant hospitalization in the United States.
• Demand for the RSV treatment has vastly surpassed the supply, causing frustration among parents and pediatricians.
• The additional doses will be distributed immediately to hospitals and physicians through the federally funded Vaccines for Children Program and commercial payers.