Is It Safe To Take The Coronavirus Drug Trump Promotes? France, Belgium, Italy Ban Hydroxychloroquine Amid Concerns

France, Italy and Belgium have moved to ban the use of anti-malaria drug hydroxychloroquine as a treatment for the coronavirus. The World Health Organization (WHO) said Monday it is suspending hydroxychloroquine as a treatment for the virus, after a study from The Lancet medical journal revealed the drug increases the death rate in COVID-19 patients.

The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA), a U.K. regulator, also said a separate trial of the drug is being put on hold. The study is backed by University of Oxford and partly financed by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation

“All hydroxychloroquine trials in COVID-19 remain under close review,” the regulator said in an email to Reuters.

Hydroxychloroquine has been touted by several right-wing leaders, most notably President Donald Trump and Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro. Trump on Monday said he had “just finished” a two-week trial of the drug. Trump has claimed without evidence that thousands of doctors and nurses have taken the drug as a preventative measure against the virus.

Bolsonaro’s Health Minister, Nelson Teich, left his position earlier this month after Bolsonaro continued to push the unproven drug as a treatment for the coronavirus. The Health Ministry has said it will continue to recommend hydroxychloroquine, despite the WHO suspending its trial of the medication.

Remdesivir, a drug developed by American pharmaceutical company Gilead Sciences, has been given emergency authorization by the U.S. government to treat COVID-19 patients. The drug reportedly improves the recovery in some patients, according to preliminary trials, and is safe to use.

As of Wednesday at 7:15 p.m. ET, there are over 5.64 million coronavirus cases and over 353,000 deaths.