City of Dalton To Offer Regeneron Treatment At Drive-In Clinic (con información en español)
The City of Dalton will begin offering monoclonal antibody treatments to COVID-19 patients on a drive-in beginning Friday (August 27th) and a link to sign up for appointments will be posted on Thursday, August 26th. The treatment, which is commonly referred to by its manufacturer’s name “Regeneron”, can be given to early-diagnosed COVID patients.
Monoclonal antibody treatment has been shown to significantly reduce COVID-19 related hospitalizations or deaths when administered within 7 days of the first onset of illness. The treatment was previously administered on an outpatient basis intravenously, but now it can offered via syringe injection.
Photo caption: City Councilmember Annalee Harlan, one of the coordinators of the program, prepares to administer the Regeneron treatment recently to a patient
The City of Dalton has been offering COVID-19 vaccinations on a drive-thru basis since January, with paramedics and EMTs from the Dalton Fire Department working alongside staff from Community Hospice and other healthcare providers to deliver the vaccines to residents. That same system will be used to deliver injections of the “Regeneron” monoclonal antibody treatment.
The “Regeneron” treatment is being offered by the City of Dalton on a drive-in basis in the upper right-hand gravel parking lot of the Dalton Convention Center. There will be no admittance inside of the building to anyone who is receiving treatment or who is COVID positive or believed to be COVID positive. Portable restrooms and other facilities have been set up in the parking lot. Patients will receive the antibody injection at the site and then will be required to wait in their vehicles on scene for an hour for observation, so patients are advised to make sure that they have enough fuel to idle for that time period.
Click here to watch a press conference announcing the "Regeneron" treatment program
The “Regeneron” treatment will be offered to patients free of charge. The dates and times for treatments will be announced shortly on the City of Dalton’s website www.daltonga.gov. Treatments will be given on an appointment-only basis, so patients must be signed up before arriving at the Dalton Convention Center parking lot site. Patients can sign up for appointments online via a link that will be found at www.daltonga.gov when appointments are available. There will also be a phone number for those who do not have internet access which will be announced soon.
The City of Dalton also will continue to offer COVID-19 vaccinations on a regular basis at the Convention Center site. The City of Dalton has a supply of the FDA-approved Pfizer vaccination which has been proven to be safe and effective to reduce your chances of being infected with COVID-19 and to reduce the chances of serious illness in the event of a breakthrough infection.
