Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) said Monday that it’s “not a good idea” for President Trump to be taking hydroxychloroquine as a potential treatment for coronavirus.
“I would rather he not be taking something that has not been approved by the scientists, especially in his age group and in his, shall we say, weight group, morbidly obese, they say,” Pelosi said during an appearance on CNN’s “Anderson Cooper 360.”
“So, I think that it’s not a good idea,” she said.
Trump said earlier in the day that he has been taking hydroxychloroquine, which is used to treat malaria, for the past week and a half after one of his personal valets tested positive for the coronavirus.
Trump has repeatedly touted the drug as a potential coronavirus cure or preventative measure over the past two months, despite the lack of evidence that it’s effective against the disease.
“Here’s my evidence: I get a lot of positive calls about it,” Trump said on Monday. “So far, I seem to be OK.”
Senate Minority Leader Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) also called Trump’s decision to take hydroxychloroquine “reckless.”
“I know him saying he is taking it, whether he is or not, is reckless, reckless, reckless. It gives people false hope, has people avoid real medical attention, and can actually cause them trouble. It is just dangerous what he did,” Schumer said on MSNBC.
The Food and Drug Administration warned last month that the drug should not be taken outside of a hospital or clinical trial due to the risk of heart rhythm problems.
An analysis of patients at Veterans Affairs hospitals across the country found that the death rates of people treated with hydroxychloroquine were higher than those who did not receive the treatment.
The White House later Monday released a memo from the president’s physician saying the two discussed the use of hydroxychloroquine and determined “the potential benefit from treatment outweighed the relative risks.”
“In consultation with our inter-agency partners and subject matter experts around the country, I continue to monitor the myriad studies investigating potential COVID-19 therapies, and I anticipate employing the same shared medical decision making based on the evidence at hand in the future,” presidential physician Sean Conley wrote.
According to the results of his medical exam released last year, Trump, 73, qualifies as obese with a listed height of 6 feet, 3 inches and a weight of 243 pounds.
The medical exam also stated that Trump was taking medication to reduce cholesterol.