Wondering if anyone knows of Evusheld availability in California/ Los Angeles County? I have found some health care organizations specific guidelines for rationing of first available doses. Those with CLL on treatment, and those unlikely to respond to covid vaccine seem to be on first tier.
Evusheld : Wondering if anyone knows of Evusheld... - CLL Support
Evusheld
In the U.S., it requires a physician order. It is disbursed from each county public health department to hospitals/facilities/practices that have capabilities to administer the two injections and watch the patient for the one hour after the two injections. If your physician needs to contact the county public health department office staff in charge of the disbursements, the EMS Coordinator contact information for California public health departments is at:
emsa.ca.gov/wp-content/uplo...
For me in FL it did not require a physician order or it was behind the scenes and I was not privy to it. It did not involve my physician nor did I speak with a physician.
Actually, you were required to have a prescription... not that Florida is following the guidance or anything. phe.gov/emergency/events/CO...
It will probably be difficult to get in general. Apparently the federal government ordered about a tenth of what they really needed to help all qualified immunocompromised individuals in the US. I've written to our senator asking his office to do whatever is possible to increase the supply available to physicians in healthcare facilities. Maybe if others do the same, it would help. My understanding is the only the federal government can purchase the supplies at this time.
Hi Davidcara,
I'm in South Texas, not California, in a border city called McAllen, part of the Rio Grande Valley, which has about 1.3 million people (McAllen city = about 165,000 people).
Weirdly, a local hospital complex managed to obtain enough Evusheld for 72 candidates. (72--lol!) I quickly applied and was the 10th accepted.
When I was finished getting the shots (today), they told me they had about 50 doses left, just waiting--in other words, more doses than patients to take them! But I suspect word simply hasn't gotten out yet around here.
No one notified me. My oncologist hadn't even heard of it as of 2 weeks ago. I just lucked into the knowledge via a local news story.
Last point: it was administered not at the local hospital itself, but at its research and development office (in a strip mall ;-), as part of a study/trial. (They're gonna follow up with me & track my antibodies.) In other words, had I searched regular doctor/hospital websites, I would've come up cold, but the office that conducts trials and research was hot.
As everything is in South Texas ...
Best of luck to you,
--Dave!
Wow, I thought it might be like what you described for a while. I have searched the internet and cannot find a thing about where it is actually available. I have seen some hospital order sets for it though. Today, I picked up some meds at the pharmacy. I asked the pharmacist about it and got a huh? I emailed my oncologist earlier today, so will wait to see what he has to say. I wonder what the LLS statement is on it?
Are you still on the treatment listed on your profile? Just wondering what the CLL Gurus feel about the Evusheld treatment. I wonder if that is a nationwide study, hmmm. Thanks Dave
I am in the same situation, kind of. My local oncologist was not aware of Evusheld. I have been keeping contact with the director of the cancer center and emailed her the information when it was in clinical studies and offered for EUA. She, too, was unaware.
When it was approved, I reached out again and they had not seen anything about it. I contacted Astra Zeneca and was sent some information. I was also told that each states health department would be responsible in distributing the supply they get. So, I called the ADPH and was passed around for 30 minutes until I found the right person and she was wonderful. She informed me that there were NO, not a single place in my city, or within 150 miles, that had requested to distribute the Evusheld. She asked for my local oncologists number and said she would call them.
At the same time, I reached out to the director of the cancer center and told her about what I found out. She then asked for the person information and that she would call them herself. She did and took it to the board for approval. Got the approval and is in the process of setting up everything and hopefully, they will be able to administer the injections at the clinic. Maybe the Lord's favor will shine on me and I can get one of the doses.. But, with my luck, I will do all of this and still not get the shots.. LOL..
Good luck, KMac. Keep us informed!
Will do.. Also, as a side note, I contacted my doctor at MD Anderson and was told that the supplies would be limited and they will monitor the data as it is rolled out. Here's a C/P:"We will get a limited supply. Per the team, the process will be slow. We will notify patients when doses are available."
This is also on my home page:
Dave - Did you have any side effects? Did you get your antibodies test back? I’ve been scheduled for Evushield in two weeks. Just wondering if it’s effective agains Omnicron too. Glad you got it!
Hi Cfarrar,
I had zero side effects, thankfully.
I also had no detectable antibodies when I received Evusheld (despite 3 Modernas).
A month later, tested again, I had 2250 antibodies.
Hope all goes well for you!
—Dave!
Wow that’s amazing. I’m scheduled for the Evushield in two weeks. I’m so thankful that this medicine is able to make such a remarkable difference! I’m a fellow Texan living in Hawaii😎
Hi again Dave,
No, my treatment ended in March. But I was told I still qualified for Evusheld because of the C in CLL, & because my WBC & ALC are slightly low. They wished I knew my antibody response to the vaccines, but let me go ahead & participate anyway, provided they take a baseline sample today, which they did, & provided I allow them to follow up with me, which I will. I needed no prescription, just had to be interviewed by the CEO of the research department as well as the “team leader.” It all was very different than the usual treatments/vaccines, I assume simply because I’m viewed as part of a study—which I’m guessing (to answer your question) might be nationwide, as the nurse said the bigwigs were interested in South-Texas response rates due to the heavily Latino demographic down here.
Hope that helps!
—Dave!
Just received the below email message from Kaiser Permanente Healthcare:
Preventive Treatment
Patients with extremely weakened immune systems, like those currently undergoing chemotherapy treatment, may be eligible—supplies permitting—to receive injections of Evusheld. Delivered by two injections every six months, this medication is believed to work against the Omicron variant. We are in the process of identifying and reaching out to eligible patients to determine if they are interested in receiving this treatment.
The USG has ordered about one tenth to one twentieth of what's needed. as are rolling out one twelfth of that total weekly. CLL Society and others have emailed the COVID czar, Jeff Zients in the White House to offer faster, wider and more equitable distribution of not only Evusheld, but also sotrovimab and Paxlovid.
That is my understanding from DR Lamanna. They are waiting for federal government to supply and it will be rationed and allocated to high priority patients first.
In Montana here, my husband was just notified by his oncologist at his appointment yesterday that he is one of the lucky ones to receive Euvsheld. Its not here yet, but they will be reaching out to him for an appointment in the next week or so. Good luck and godspeed to everyone who gets it!
I received my two shots—one in each buttocks yesterday. I live in Albuquerque, NM and my health care provider just started giving them last week. My oncologist (I have CLL) told me to get my fourth booster shot as well.
Oops—I meant my second booster vaccine.
Try this federal website, it’s a locator for Evusheld (and Paxlovid).
Good luck hope it helps and you find it!