Monoclonal antibodies have emerged as a powerful tool for reducing hospitalization and death from COVID-19, but recently published studies suggests that the lab-created proteins are going to those who need them less — patients with the fewest chronic conditions — while usage in hospital outpatient clinics has followed a persistent pattern of racial and ethnic disparities. Researchers analyzing more than 2 million Medicare claims for monoclonal antibodies found that individuals with no chronic illness were five times more likely to receive monoclonal antibody treatment than those with six or mo…