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CIA employees were privately warned not to take an antimalarial drug hailed by Donald Trump as a “game changer” in the war on coronavirus.
Sudden death is one of the suspected side effects of hydroxychloroquine, according to the intelligence agency in a memo for its workforce published online.
Despite the lack of medical evidence, the President has strongly promoted the drug as a possible treatment for Covid-19, which killed 23,675 and infected 588,421 in the United States.
But amid the positive noises surrounding the drug stemming from daily White House briefings, Langley made his concern clear.
According to advice seen by the Washington Post, “Patients are not recommended to use hydroxychloroquine except by medical professionals who prescribe it as part of ongoing research studies.”
The president (pictured at yesterday’s White House press conference) has strongly promoted the drug as a possible treatment for Covid-19, which killed 23,675 and infected 588,421 in the United States.
Sudden death is one of the suspected side effects of the antimalarial drug hydroxychloroquine.
Amid the positive noises surrounding the drug stemming from daily White House briefings, Langley made his concern clear (pictured is CIA headquarters in Virginia)
The council, released March 27 in response to queries from CIA staff, noted that possible side effects include “sudden cardiac death.”
The CIA did not respond to the newspaper’s request for comment.
Trump has been a leading cheerleader for taking hydroxychloroquine in concert with an antibiotic for people infected with the virus, noting a study in France that scientists have treated with skepticism.
He tweeted that the drug could be “one of the biggest game changers in the history of medicine” and should “be put to use immediately.
And when journalists criticized him for his drug defense, he said: ‘What do I know? I’m not doctor. But I have common sense.
In promoting the possibilities of the drug, the President has often declared: “What do you have to lose?”
Infectious diseases expert Anthony Fauci (pictured alongside Trump and Vice President Mike Pence) who has been a staple of the podium during daily briefings, urged Americans not to take the drug.
Responding to Trump’s call for urgent supplies, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi said he will allow some hydroxychloroquine exports to the United States.
Trump reacted by tweeting: ‘Extraordinary times require even closer cooperation between friends. Thanks to India and the Indian people for the decision on HCQ. It will not be forgotten!
But the president’s defense of the drug has had no echo from his closest advisers and has seen divisions among the Washington task force that directs the health crisis strategy.
Anthony Fauci, the infectious disease expert who has been a staple of the podium during daily briefings, urged Americans not to take the drug.
Answering questions on March 23 about whether he would prescribe the drug, he said “the answer is no” and said there was only “anecdotal evidence.”
In a sign of growing divisions in the top team, Trump last week even stepped in and stopped Fauci from answering a question about hydroxychloroquine.
The side effects of hydroxychloroquine noted by the CIA have also been replicated in other studies.
Scientists in Brazil have suspended part of a study of the antimalarial drug after heart rhythm problems developed in a quarter of people who received the highest dose of two.
The Brazilian study, in the Amazonian city of Manaus, had planned to enroll 440 seriously ill COVID-19 patients to test two doses of chloroquine, but the researchers reported the results after only 81 had been treated.
French pharmaceutical giant Sanofi has promised to donate 100 million doses if the tests prove to be efficient.
The company said in a statement that the hydroxychloroquine doses will be administered to 50 countries.
Sanofi is also increasing production, with the goal of quadrupling its ability to manufacture the drug.
The company said it “will continue to donate the drug to governments and hospital institutions if ongoing clinical studies demonstrate its efficacy and safety in patients with Covid-19.”
But he also cautioned that hydroxychloroquine has “several known serious side effects” and the evidence so far is inconclusive on its safety and efficacy in treating Covid-19.
“While hydroxychloroquine creates a lot of hope for patients around the world, it should be remembered that there are no results from ongoing studies and that the results can be positive or negative,” he said.
