President touts unproven drugs, FDA fast track
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump, facing a national outcry over the lack of available coronavirus testing and an imminent spike in positive cases, tried to inject some optimism into the situation Thursday, suggesting that two existing drugs may be effective remedies and saying the Food and Drug Administration is fast-tracking them to market.
In both cases, the president overstated the speed and scope of elements of his administration’s response to the crisis, part of a pattern of overselling that has been a frequent part of his presidency.
Neither of the two drugs Trump mentioned is a proven treatment for COVID-19, the deadly disease caused by the coronavirus, and neither is likely to be publicly available in the near future, as the head of the FDA said in gently walking back part of Trump’s comments, which painted a far rosier picture.
“Normally the FDA would take a long time to approve something like that, and it’s — it was approved very, very quickly and it’s now approved by prescription,” Trump said during a White House news briefing.
Hydroxychloroquine, an anti-malaria drug developed more than 50 years ago and also used to treat arthritis, has in fact been determined to be effective against the coronavirus in recent laboratory experiments, as Trump said. It is not, however, currently approved for use by people who have contracted the coronavirus.
Stepping to the podium after Trump spoke, the FDA commissioner, Dr. Stephen M. Hahn, praised the president for removing regulations that would otherwise slow the approval of the drug for expanded use, but said tests were continuing in the U.S.
“What’s also important is not to provide false hope,” Hahn said. “We may have the right drug, but it might not be in the appropriate dosage form right now, and it might do more harm than good.”
He said the drugs could be available under “compassionate use” protocols, a longstanding program which lets doctors use unapproved drugs on certain patients with approval from the FDA.
Trump, who has appeared at news conferences with members of his coronavirus task force every day this week, has been eager to show progress, which has led him into error more than once in recent days.
Wednesday, Trump claimed that two massive Navy hospital ships were in “tiptop shape” and set to be deployed to New York and California “in the next week or so,” but both ships are currently undergoing maintenance and there are no medical personnel on board.
Earlier this month, the president erroneously claimed that “anyone who wants a test can get a test,” which, even weeks later, is still not the case.
“It’s very exciting,” Trump said about the existing antiviral drugs. “It could be a game changer, and maybe not.”