Rolling Stone: Why It’s Dangerous for Trump and Fox News to Prescribe Unproven Drugs to Treat Coronavirus

[Nat]

Even if ingested in its medicinal form, evidence that hydroxychloroquine can help combat COVID-19 is not definitive. Clinical trials are underway to determine whether it could be an effective treatment.

But Fox News is already all in. On her show Monday night, Laura Ingraham brought on a man who says his symptoms dissipated after taking the drug. She later spoke to Dr. Meredith Clement, an LSU infectious-disease expert who has incorporated [hydroxychloroquine] in the “algorithm” by which they treat patients, but noted that it was “too soon to tell” whether it’s effective. “We don’t know and we need further data,” Clement said. “We need to collect the clinical data … to see if we’re going to see much of a benefit.”

Now is a good time to mention that there is no known cure for COVID-19. There are no preventive measures to be taken other than social distancing and good hygiene, and no drug has been approved to treat the disease. President Trump is not a medical professional. Nor is Laura Ingraham. Nor are the hosts of Fox & Friends, who have been offering similar prescriptions. Nor is Sean Hannity, who on Monday read aloud a “regimen” of various drugs he says he received from a New York-area doctor.

Why It's Dangerous for Trump and Fox News to Prescribe Unproven Drugs to Treat Coronavirus

The president thinks he knows how to handle COVID-19 better than doctors. He does not

www.rollingstone.com

Fox hosts have been repeating completely uninformed and untested medical advice on their shows today, listing medications they say people should take. It's unbelievably reckless and dangerous.