STORY, THANKS A LOT. >> THANK YOU SO MUCH, STAY WELL. >> YOU TOO. >>
INDIANA'S BUSINESS GIANTS ARE NOT ONLY ANSWERING THE CALL TO HELP NONPROFITS, THEY'RE ALSO ON THE FRONTLINES OF TESTING FOR
COVID-19. >> WE'RE SIMPLY TRYING TO STEP UP AND FULFILL AND AN UNMET MEDICAL NEED. WE'LL CONTINUE TO
DO THAT IN AS MANY WAYS AS WE CAN. THIS IS A NATIONAL CRISIS. THIS IS A CRISIS FOR THE STATE OF INDIANA, A CRISIS FOR THE
CITY OF INDIANAPOLIS. I THINK EVERY CITIZEN, EVERY COMPANY NEEDS TO DO EVERYTHING THEY CAN TO HELP FIGHT COVID-19.
>> THAT'S ELI LILLY CHIEF SCIENTIFIC OFFICER DANIEL SKOVRONSKY SPEAKING ABOUT THE UNIFIED APPROACH HOOSIER
BUSINESSES AND THE COMMUNITY ARE TAKING TO FIGHT THE SPREAD OF THE CORONAVIRUS. LILLY AND ROCHE DIAGNOSTICS ARE
AMONG DOZENS OF HOOSIER COMPANIES STEPPING UP TO DO THEIR PART TO IN FLATTENING THE CURVE. ROCHE WAS ONE OF THE
FIRST TO SEND CORONAVIRUS TEST KITS TO LABORATORIES ACROSS THE COUNTRY. THIS WEEK LILLY STARTED ITS
DRIVE-THRU DRUG TESTING FOR HEALTHCARE WORKERS AND AFTER THE FIRST DAY, EXPANDED IT TO FIRST RESPONDERS.
INSIDE INDIANA BUSINESS HEALTH REPORTER KYLIE VELETA JOINS US WITH MORE ON HOW LILLY IS KEEPING UP WITH DEMAND, THE
COMPANY'S EFFORTS TO FIND AN ANTIBODY THERAPY AND OTHER SUPPLIES THEY SAY ARE NEEDED. KYLIE.
>> THANK YOU, GERRY. GERRY, AS WE REPORTED LAST WEEK, LILLY LAUNCHED A PARTNERSHIP WITH THE INDIANA STATE
DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH TO UTILIZE A FACILITY AT LILLY RESEARCH LABORATORIES TO CONDUCT ADDITIONAL COVID-19 TESTING.
THEY ALSO INDICATED THEY WERE WORKING ON DRIVE-THRU TESTING FOR HEALTHCARE WORKERS AND THIS WEEK THEY GOT THAT PROGRAM OFF
THE GROUND. NOT ONLY THAT, FIRST RESPONDERS IN INDIANAPOLIS ARE NOW ABLE TO RECEIVE THE TEST. LILLY SAYS THE NEW GROUP
ELIGIBLE FOR TESTING INCLUDES PUBLIC SAFETY, FIRE AND AMBULANCE PERSONNEL. TESTING WILL BE DETERMINED AND DIRECTED
BY THE OCCUPATIONAL HEALTH PROVIDER FOR EACH INDIVIDUAL AGENCY. LILLY CHIEF SCIENTIFIC OFFICER
DANIEL SKOVRONSKY SAYS SO FAR, THE COMPANY IS KEEPING UP WITH DEMAND. >> WE HAVE BEEN ABLE TO MEET THE
DEMAND, SO FAR, WE HAVE CALL-IN NUMBERS SET UP, WE SCHEDULE APPOINTMENTS GENERALLY IN THE SAME DAY THAT PEOPLE CALL IN,
AND WHEN THEY GET HERE, IT'S CLOSED PRETTY QUICKLY. PROBABLY AROUND 20 MINUTES FROM START TO FINISH. THE CAPACITY THAT WE
HAVE CAN STILL EXPAND IF NEEDED, AND SO FAR WE'RE NOT TURNING BACK PEOPLE. OF COURSE, OUR GOAL IS TO HELP PATIENTS. AND THE
BEST WAY WE CAN DO THAT IS HELP PEOPLE THAT TAKE CARE OF PATIENTS, AND KEEP US SAFE AS FIRST RESPONDERS. OUR OTHER
GOAL, WHICH IS I THINK EVEN CRITICALLY IMPORTANT, IS TO STOP THE SPREAD OF COVID-19 IN THE COMMUNITY. THERE IS STILL
SPREAD, WE NEED PEOPLE TO STAY AT HOME TO ISOLATE THEMSELVES FROM ONE ANOTHER, AND WE NEED TO IDENTIFY THE PEOPLE WHO HAVE
COVID-19 SO THEY CAN TAKE EXTRA PRECAUTIONS SO AS NOT TO SPREAD IT TO THEIR FAMILY OR TO ANY CONTACTS THEY MIGHT HAVE OUTSIDE
THEIR HOUSEHOLD. SO THAT'S OUR GOAL. I THINK THAT'S HOW WE CAN HAVE THE BIGGEST IMPACT. >>
SKOVRONSKY ALSO SAYS LILLY IS MAKING PROGRESS WITH CANADIAN-BASED BIOTECH COMPANY ABCELLERA IN TRYING TO FIND AN
ANTIBODY THERAPY TO TREAT THE CORONAVIRUS. IF IT'S SUCCESSFUL, THE COMPANY SAYS IT WILL WORK WITH GLOBAL REGULATORS
TO BRING A TREATMENT TO PATIENTS. >> THAT PROJECT IS A VERY IMPORTANT PROJECT TO TRY AND
CREATE FROM REALLY A PATIENT WHO RECOVERED FROM COVID-19 TO ISOLATE THEIR ANTI-BODIES THAT THEY NATURAL MAKE TO FIGHT OFF
THE VIRUS AND TURN THOSE INTO A DRUG THAT CAN BE ADMINISTERED TO THOUSANDS AND THOUSANDS OF OTHER PEOPLE WHO NEED IT. THAT PROJECT
IS PROGRESSING QUICKLY. WE HAVE TEAMS AT ABCELLERA, AT ELI LILLY, AT ALL OF OUR SITES, AND ALSO AT THE NIH, LITERALLY
WORKING NIGHT AND DAY TO ADVANCE THAT PROJECT, AND CONTINUE TO MOVE AT A VERY, VERY ACCELERATED PACE. OUR TARGET IS TO BE ABLE
TO TEST THESE MASS PRODUCED ANTI-BODIES IN PATIENTS WITHIN THE NEXT FOUR MONTHS. >> SKOVRONSKY ALSO SAYS THERE IS
A NEED FOR OTHER SUPPLIES LIKE TESTING EQUIPMENT AND SOMETHING AS SIMPLE AS SWABS. HE ALSO ADDRESSED HOW THE CRISIS HAS
CHALLENGED COMPANIES LIKE LILLY TO MEET THE DEMAND FOR TESTING NOW .AND IN THE FUTURE. GERRY, THE DRIVE-THROUGH TESTING
>> THERE ARE OTHER THINGS THAT ARE JUST IN CRITICAL SUPPLY IN THE COUNTRY. AND WE HOPE TO BE ABLE TO OBTAIN ADDITIONAL
SUPPLIES SO WE CAN CONTINUE TO TEST PATIENTS. THESE ARE SIMPLE THINGS LIKE SAFETY EQUIPMENT FOR THE PEOPLE DOING THE TESTING,
MASKS, AS WELL AS EVEN SWABS THAT ARE USED TO SAMPLE THE PATIENT. THEY ARE IN SHORT SUPPLY NATIONALLY. UNFORTUNATELY
THE CORONAVIRUS CAUGHT THIS COUNTRY UNPREPARED, YOU'RE SEEING COMPANIES STEP INTO THE BREACH.
>> GERRY, THE DRIVE-THRU IS CURRENTLY NOT AVAILABLE TO THE PUBLIC. SKOVRONSKY SAID THAT IS SOMETHING THAT COULD BE COMING