Trump Touts Malaria Drug As Possible Virus Treatment But FDA Strikes More Cautious Tone
President Donald Trump put the spotlight on potential treatments that are showing some promising results, but FDA Commissioner reiterated the importance of not giving people "false hope." Experts say that in times of crisis, it's tempting to want to cut corners and move as fast as possible, but science moves at the pace it does for a reason: patient safety. Meanwhile, the company who makes the drug the president touted instituted a price hike in January that nearly doubled the cost. But its officials have since cut the cost again.
The Associated Press:
Trump Focuses Attention On Possible Coronavirus Treatments
President Donald Trump focused attention on possible treatments for the new coronavirus on Thursday, citing potential use of a drug long used to treat malaria and some other approaches still in testing. At a White House news conference, Trump and Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Dr. Stephen Hahn cited the malaria drug chloroquine, along with remdesivir, an experimental antiviral from Gilead Sciences, and possibly using plasma from survivors of COVID-19, the disease the new virus causes. Those treatments are among several being tested that might ease symptoms but do not stop the virus from spreading. (Marchione, 3/19)
The Wall Street Journal:
U.S. Moves To Expand Array Of Drug Therapies Deployed Against Coronavirus
President Trump said Thursday he is directing the Food and Drug Administration to expedite testing and possible broader use of some investigational medicines to help treat patients diagnosed amid the pandemic of the new coronavirus disease. ... Mr. Trump specifically mentioned two drugs, chloroquine and hydroxychloroquine, that have long been used for malaria but aren’t approved for the coronavirus, as well as an antiviral drug, remdesivir, that is currently being tested in clinical research on Covid-19, the coronavirus disease. (Burton, Restuccia and Hopkins, 3/19)
Reuters:
Trump Presses FDA To Fast-Track Potential Coronavirus Drugs
Trials on potential coronavirus therapies are already in the works, and it was unclear how Trump’s call for faster experimental testing process could further expedite an effective treatment. “It could be a game changer or maybe not,” Trump told reporters. (3/19)
CIDRAP:
Trump Says FDA On Fast Track To Approve COVID-19 Drugs
But FDA Commissioner Steve Hahn, MD, struck a more cautious tone during the press conference. He said he did not know how effective the treatment would be, and urged caution when looking at therapeutics for the novel coronavirus. "Let me make one thing clear. The FDA's responsibility to the American people is to ensure that products are safe and effective," said Hahn. Of using hydroxychloroquine, Hahn said, "We want to do that in the setting of a clinical trial, a large, pragmatic clinical trial to actually gather that information." (Soucheray, 3/19)
The New York Times:
With Minimal Evidence, Trump Asks F.D.A. To Study Malaria Drugs For Coronavirus
The malaria drugs, chloroquine and hydroxychloroquine, are among the remedies that have been tried in several countries as the virus has spread around the world, killing at least 9,800. Doctors in China, South Korea and France have reported that the treatments seem to help. But those efforts have not involved the kind of large, carefully controlled studies that would provide the global medical community the proof that these drugs work on a significant scale. (Grady and Thomas, 3/19)
ABC News:
Chloroquine, An Old Malaria Drug, May Help Treat Novel Coronavirus, Doctors Say
What do malaria and COVID-19 have in common? On the surface, not much. But according to early research, an old malaria drug called chloroquine might also work for the new coronavirus. Could a decades-old malaria drug work to treat COVID-19? Elon Musk seems to think so, recently tweeting that it "might be worth considering chloroquine" for COVID-19. Although data are spare, studies so far seem to back up the billionaire entrepreneur’s suggestion. (Baldwin, 3/19)
Politico:
'Bad Advice From The President': Trump Touts Unproven Coronavirus Drugs
President Donald Trump said he will "slash red tape like nobody has even done it before" in a bid to get unapproved coronavirus treatments to patients faster and identify effective drugs. The president said Thursday he directed the Food and Drug Administration to "eliminate out-of-date rules and bureaucracy so this can go forward fast" — but he did not offer any details. Instead, Trump and top health officials highlighted steps the government has taken in recent weeks to launch clinical trials of potential coronavirus treatments. (Owermohle, 3/19)
Stat:
With The Coronavirus Surging, Trump Wants Science To Move Faster. It Can’t
For about 20 minutes on Thursday, President Trump undermined six decades of dogma on the development of safe and effective drugs. Trump, addressing a nation under shelter and quarantine from the coronavirus pandemic, said a new drug for Covid-19, yet to be proved safe and effective, was now “approved or very close to approved.” Another, also not approved for coronavirus, would be “available almost immediately,” in part because using it is “not going to kill anybody.” (Florko and Garde, 3/19)
Financial Times:
US Drugmaker Doubled Price On Potential Coronavirus Treatment
The only US drugmaker that makes a potential treatment for the coronavirus that was touted by President Donald Trump raised the price by almost 100 per cent in January, as the virus caused havoc across China. Rising Pharmaceuticals, a New Jersey based company, increased the price of chloroquine — an antimalarial, which is one of the drugs that is being tested against Covid-19 — on January 23, according to data from research firm Elsevier. The drug price rose 97.86 per cent to $7.66 per 250mg pill and $19.88 per 500mg pill. (Kuchler, 3/19)
Stat:
Amid Coronavirus, A Drugmaker Rescinds Its Chloroquine Price Hike
In the past two weeks, Rising Pharmaceuticals slashed the price in half as interest in the drug — normally used as an antimalarial — erupted. “Once this whole issue started to explode with regard to the pandemic, we implemented a price decrease to effectively revert back to 2015 pricing across all customers,” Ira Baeringer, the company’s chief operating officer, said in an interview. (Facher, 3/19)
Oklahoman:
Coronavirus: Chloroquine Can Have Deadly Side Effects
Chloroquine, a drug President Donald Trump has announced is being fast-tracked for clinical testing as a treatment for COVID-19, can have deadly side effects — particularly if accidentally ingested by children. Lana and Steve Ervin know how lethal chloroquine can be. They lost a 2-year-old daughter to the drug 37 years ago. Lana said she believes Ashley ingested just one pill. (Ellis, 3/20)
ABC News:
Remdesivir Could Be Promising Drug Candidate To Treat Coronavirus
While there are no medications currently approved to treat people with the novel coronavirus, there are several therapies being investigated as potential life-saving options. Remdesivir is one of the most promising, with President Donald Trump touting the drug during a press conference Thursday. (Nunneley and Salzman, 3/19)
And a look at where vaccine research stands —
The New York Times:
Search For Coronavirus Vaccine Becomes A Global Competition
A global arms race for a coronavirus vaccine is underway. In the three months since the virus began its deadly spread, China, Europe and the United States have all set off at a sprint to become the first to produce a vaccine. But while there is cooperation on many levels — including among companies that are ordinarily fierce competitors — hanging over the effort is the shadow of a nationalistic approach that could give the winner the chance to favor its own population and potentially gain the upper hand in dealing with the economic and geostrategic fallout from the crisis. (Sanger, Kirkpatrick, Wee and Bennhold, 3/19)
Stat:
An Updated Guide To The Coronavirus Drugs And Vaccines In Development
In the months since the novel coronavirus rose from a regional crisis to a global threat, drug makers large and small have scrambled to advance their best ideas for thwarting a pandemic. Some are taking a cue from older antivirals. Some are tapping tried-and-true technologies, and others are pressing forward with futuristic approaches to human medicine. (Garde, 3/19)
