Former President Joe Biden recently criticized the president for consuming anti-malaria drug hydroxychloroquine, which some people tout as a potential treatment for novel coronavirus while there are no scientific pieces of evidence to support that claim. According to Biden, the POTUS's decision to take the drug is totally irresponsible.
The presumptive Democratic nominee said Trump's decision to take the anti-malaria drug coincides with the comments he made at a controversy-plagued White House press briefing, wherein he recommended injecting disinfectants to treat COVID-19. At a Yahoo News town hall on coronavirus and food insecurity, Biden compared the president's action to injecting Clorox into blood, hoping it may cure you.
Expressing shock at Trump taking the unproven drugs, Biden pointed out that medical experts do not recommend taking the drug. This comes days after Trump admitted taking the anti-malaria drug in an attempt to minimize his susceptibility to the deadly virus.
During the White House Cabinet meeting, which was televised on Monday, Trump said he has been taking the drug for about 14 days and rejected new findings from the Veterans Affairs administration that suggest hydroxychloroquine was ineffective in curing coronavirus patients.
He backed his actions by stating that there are many people taking it, adding that even frontline workers are taking the drug. In a recently released statement, the president's physician Sean Conley said he advised Trump to take the drug.
After discussing multiple shreds of evidence that support and disapprove the use of hydroxychloroquine, the statement says Conley and Trump found that the potential benefit from taking the drug was more than the risk involved in taking it. In Mar., Trump touted the drug as a potential COVID-19 treatment, causing an uncontrollable surge in demand for it amid several businesses closing down due to the coronavirus-induced lockdown.
Patients relying on hydroxychloroquine for treating lupus, rheumatoid arthritis, and a slew of other illnesses were reportedly left with no choice but to search for alternatives as the drug flew off the shelves across the United States. The FDA (Food and Drug Administration) announced there was a shortage due to skyrocketing demand for the drug, adding that manufacturers were producing more hydroxychloroquine.
Describing the president's move as counterproductive, Biden said taking the drug is not going to help, but Trump refuses to look at the studies that have been done. Biden said the drug is known for doing more harm than good and recommending or taking it is totally irresponsible.