President Donald Trump said Monday that he is taking a malaria drug to lessen symptoms should he get the new coronavirus, even though the drug is unproven for fighting COVID-19.Trump might simply be lying about this -- he knows that the announcement will be headline-grabbing, and he knows that advocating hydroxychloroquine is an effective way of needling the libs.
Trump told reporters he has been taking the drug, hydroxychloroquine, and a zinc supplement daily “for about a week and a half now.” Trump spent weeks pushing the drug as a potential cure for COVID-19 against the cautionary advice of many of his administration’s top medical professionals.
But he was elected president because he's exactly like the Fox-watching voters to whom he appeals. They're all in on hydroxychloroquine. They sing its praises at Free Republic and in Gateway Pundit comments sections. Why wouldn't Trump be just as persuaded of its value as a COVID-19 cure-all? Democrats hate it! It must be good!
But is he really taking it?
Trump said his doctor did not recommend the drug to him, but he requested it from the White House physician.Trump's doctors haven't been honest and forthcoming about his health, but it was revealed in 2018 that he has cardiovascular issues.
“I started taking it, because I think it’s good,” Trump said. “I’ve heard a lot of good stories.”
The Food and Drug Administration warned health professionals last month that the drug should not be used outside of hospital or research settings, due to sometimes fatal side effects. Regulators issued the alert after receiving reports of heart-rhythm problems, including deaths, from poison control centers and other health providers.
On Tuesday, White House physician Dr. Ronny Jackson disclosed Trump's basic labs measurements [and] physical exam results.... Although it was not part of the official medical records that were released yesterday, after further questioning, Jackson also revealed that Trump underwent a coronary calcium CT scan as part of his routine physical exam.The Mayo Clinic says that a score between 100 and 300 is "associated with a relatively high risk of heart attack or other heart disease over the next three to five years."
His score is 133, and anything over 100 indicates plaque is present and that the patient has heart disease.
... a new score of 133 reveals there has been a steady build-up of plaque in his blood vessels, indicating moderate heart disease.
Under those circumstances, if you were one of the president's doctors, would you give him a drug that can disturb heart rhythms?
I think you'd give him a placebo and let him think it's hydroxychloroquine.
There's a risk that if he's not really taking hydroxychloroquine and he becomes infected with the coronavirus, then suffers serious illness (or dies), you'll be pilloried by the right-wing media for failing to protect him with this marvelous wonder drug. You'll be harassed by conservatives for the rest of your life. Some will want you charged with murder or treason.
But I think your average White House doctor doesn't realize how people think in the right-wing fever swamps. I think whoever is making this decision simply doesn't want to be the person who administers a fatal dose of a drug to the president, against sound medical advice.
So my guess is that Trump believes he's taking hydroxychloroquine, but he's not actually is taking it.
****
UPDATE: Well now there's this:
NEW: A memo from White House physician Dr. Sean Conley lays out the discussion that lead to Pres. Trump taking hydroxy-chloroquine: “We concluded the potential benefit from treatment outweighed the relative risks.” pic.twitter.com/f7qmKzKcxp
— Alex Salvi (@alexsalvinews) May 19, 2020
Conley is the physician to the president and an officer in the Navy. Maybe, when the president asks for a dangerous drug, he thinks he has to follow his commander in chief's orders.
No comments:
Post a Comment