usa ordering 50 % relenza and lani iv news

From just a few weeks ago. Direct from the HHS in the United States, the inside scoop.I have summarised a million pages for you. Feel free to check the rest.

Once BTA made a price sensitive announcment when it was confirmed the USA was giving relenza 20% split. Now its 50% confirmed.



''Because of that we moved to change
the policy from an 80-20 ratio to a 50-50,
because we had not seen significant resistance
to the zanamivir product Relenza. However,
when we bought antivirals, the first one was
still an 80-20. As we've gone on through the
summer that has been delivered. And so the
federal stockpile has been replenished.''

"I cannot give the numbers out
because we are in procurement sensitivity
right now."


''As we've gone forward the
secretary signed a memo recommended by the
agencies within the department to buy more
based on the actions we had before. And that
was that we needed to move forward with a more
balanced or 50-50 ratio of these two drugs.
So we will be going out soon with purchases of
more zanamivir.''


''The manufacturers have been
producing at full capacity, and have expanded
that capacity throughout the summer, and will
continue to produce these.''


''So that is looking very, very promising, and
there are other drugs which we are now
considering funding as we go forward. We have
a solicitation of received proposals to move
forward with not only for new types of drugs
but also combination therapies''


''And the last point is that some of
these drugs that are given intravenously may
be available sooner than several years from
now under emergency uses authorization''



''Now of course the predominant
virus in the U.S. since April by far has been
the 2009 H1N1 viruses. Those viruses are all
sensitive to Zanamivir that we've tested. Of
-- and that is going on 1,000 different
specimens that are tested so far.
Over 99 percent of those 2009
H1N1s are susceptible to Oseltamivir. We have
also seen Tamivir resistance in a few
instances, as have some other countries.''


''Now with regard to influenza and
children, or influenza and seriously
hospitalized adults, we can make available
parenteral antivirals for treatment. The two
that are currently available under an
emergency IND are IV zanamivir, and IV
Peramivir.''



http://www.hhs.gov/aspr/conferences/nbsb/nbsb-mtgtrnscrpt-090925.pdf