Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Mentions Of Anecdotal Success Of Malaria Drug Scrapped From CDC's Website
Reuters: CDC Removes Unusual Guidance To Doctors About Drug Favored By Trump
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has removed from its website highly unusual guidance informing doctors on how to prescribe hydroxychloroquine and chloroquine, drugs recommended by President Donald Trump to treat the coronavirus. The move comes three days after Reuters reported that the CDC published key dosing information involving the two antimalarial drugs based on unattributed anecdotes rather than peer-reviewed science. (Roston and Taylor, 4/7)
CNN: CDC Updates Website To Remove Dosage Guidance On Drug Touted By Georgia, Florida And Trump
Hydroxychloroquine is an anti-malaria drug that has not been approved by the US Food and Drug Administration to treat coronavirus. With anecdotal reports that the drug offers benefits against the virus, the FDA did issue a limited Emergency Use Authorization to distribute it from the national stockpile. Previous guidance for doctors included dosages for hydroxychloroquine, even though the agency said the "optimal dosage and duration" to treat coronavirus is still unknown. (Holcombe, Christensen and Sutton, 4/8)
The Hill: CDC Updates Website To Remove Dosage Guidance On Drug Touted By Trump
The website continues to note that "[t]here are no drugs or other therapeutics approved by the US Food and Drug Administration to prevent or treat COVID-19." The CDC did not immediately respond to a request for comment from The Hill regarding the change. The removal was first reported by Reuters. The update comes as medical experts express skepticism over Trump’s confidence in the drugs, which he suggested he may take himself and was touting as recently as a Tuesday night interview on Fox News. (Axelrod, 4/7)
NBC News: Mayo Clinic Cardiologist: 'Inexcusable' To Ignore Hydroxychloroquine Side Effects
As the U.S. scales up purchase and use of the drug hydroxychloroquine to treat coronavirus patients, a leading Mayo Clinic cardiologist is sounding a warning: Anyone promoting the drug also needs to flag its rare but serious — and potentially fatal — side effects. President Donald Trump has repeatedly touted the potential benefits of hydroxychloroquine, which has been approved by the Food and Drug Administration to treat malaria, lupus and other autoimmune ailments but hasn't yet been proven effective and safe in treating the coronavirus. (Przybyla, 4/7)
Vox: Is Trump Making Money By Touting Hydroxychloroquine To Treat Coronavirus? Not Much, If At All, Per Financial Records.
President Donald Trump’s aggressive support for the unproven idea of using the lupus and malaria drug hydroxychloroquine to treat coronavirus has puzzled public health experts, journalists, and others for weeks.A Monday New York Times report appeared to offer one possible new explanation: financial interest — his own, and that of those close to him. However, Trump’s Sanofi stake is indirect and rather small — he owns shares through a fund that includes a diverse array of stocks. As Vox’s Emily Stewart noted, a government official repeatedly promoting a product made by a company they have a minute stake in would be a very inefficient way to be corrupt (Collins, 4/7)
