ENGLEWOOD – Governor Ron DeSantis was in Englewood Monday afternoon announcing another Monoclonal Antibody site on the Suncoast.
“If you’re COVID positive you have an opportunity to get an early treatment,” said Florida Governor, Ron DeSantis.
The new antibody site, at the Tringali Community Center will be open 7 days a week from 9 to 5 PM, with the ability to treat 320 patients a day.
“If you’re someone that’s COVID positive particularly in a high risk category you can just simply make an appointment and come without making a doctor’s appointment in the meantime if that’s right for you, so were trying to streamline it and make sure that folks have access,” said Governor DeSantis.
Governor DeSantis hopes to have 21 sites open across the state by Wednesday morning.
“Obviously we can’t make it five minutes from everybody’s house but something that can be a car ride away so we think that we have spread it out in a way that makes it accessible for everyone,” said Governor DeSantis.
State EMS Medical Director, Dr. Kenneth Scheppke says vaccines and the monoclonal treatments are our two best – but different – tools in the fight against COVID-19.
“The vaccine, while it protects you, will take up to six weeks to develop that protection. If you get infected today, what’s really been missing in this response has been the treatment arm. And, thank you governor for getting this treatment out there. Cause it’s sort of been one of those best kept secrets on covid about this really effect monoclonal antibody treatment which will work today,” said Dr. Scheppke.
Dr. Scheppke says the antibody treatment can reduce your chance of hospitalization and death by 70 percent.
“Now more people know about it, it’s free, they know it’s been effective, the testimonials continue to roll in and we think that this will be a one tool, not the only tool but one of the tools that we have to be able to help people,”
For more information on the Monoclonal Antibody site, you can visit the Charlotte County Department of Health website here.
