Hospitals were overwhelmed last winter by a surge in pediatric cases of RSV. Now a new monoclonal antibody shot could help, but price and supply issues are causing delays in getting it to infants.
Emily Bendt cradles her two-week-old infant, Willow, at her home near Portland, OR in early October 2023. Bendt, a pediatric nurse, closely followed the recent approval of the RSV monoclonal antibody Nirsevimab but has been unable to find it for her daughter.
Nirsevimab is a monoclonal antibody treatment, not a traditional vaccine. The passive immunity it confers lasts about five months. But that's long enough to get babies through their first RSV season, when they're at highest risk for complications. But as infection-control measures were rolled back, more babies and toddlers were exposed to RSV for the first time, at the same time. The virus came roaring back. Serious RSV cases requiring pediatric hospitalization soared during the winter of 2022-2023., professor of pediatrics at Oregon Health & Science University's Doernbecher Children's Hospital, and president-elect of the American Academy of Pediatrics.
One major issue is the initial price: at $495 per dose, it's the most expensive standard childhood shot. Many pediatricians have been reluctant to order it, unsure about whether they'll be reimbursed by insurers.in the Affordable Care Act, commercial insurance plans can wait up to a year before they are required to cover it.
Until Nirsevimab's debut a few months ago, most hospitals didn't have a strong incentive to participate in Vaccines for Children. The rest of the childhood vaccine series is typically given to kids by pediatricians, in outpatient clinics.
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