Czech Republic to acquire anti-Covid drug Bamlan

The Czech Republic will buy the breakthrough drug Bamlan (Bamlanivimab) which has been found to be highly effective against Covid-19 in patients at risk of developing severe symptoms, Prime Minister Andrej Babiš said on Twitter on Tuesday.

Bamlan, produced by the American company Eli Lilly, stops the virus from multiplying in the body, reducing the risk of severe symptoms by 80 percent.

Mr. Babiš said the government had secured the first delivery of the drug, but did not specify when the drug would arrive or in what quantity.

The drug is being used with considerable success in the United States, Canada, Germany and Hungary. It works on the same principle as Regeneron, which the Czech Republic has also shown an interest in acquiring.