WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump has stopped talking about the decades-old antimalarial drug he once touted as a “game changer” for COVID-19, but it won’t be as simple for the rest of the health system to just move on.
When Trump first began touting the drug in mid-March, a frenzy ensued as hospitals, patients and doctors raced to secure supplies. Many believed even if the drug didn’t turn out to be an effective coronavirus treatment, it might be able to ward off infection.
But as quickly as pharmacies were drained of the pills, the tide has now turned against hydroxychloroquine and its chemical cousin, chloroquine. Regulators and scientists have raised concerns about potentially serious side effects, while Gilead Sciences Inc.’s antiviral therapy remdesivir was cleared for U.S. use. Some hospitals, including Mount Sinai Health System in New York, no longer include the drug in their treatment regimen for COVID-19.
The surge resulted in shortages that left patients who’d long taken the medication to treat lupus and rheumatoid arthritis hunting for alternatives. To help get more drugs to market, the Food and Drug Administration has allowed overseas manufacturing facilities that were previously sanctioned for quality violations to begin producing it for U.S. patients.
Hydroxychloroquine prescriptions jumped to 298,660 during the week of March 20, more than doubling from a week earlier, according to data compiled by Bloomberg Intelligence. But prescriptions have now plummeted back to nearly normal levels, and there are signs a speed-up in manufacturing is slowing.
Demand for bottles of chemicals made by United States Pharmacopeia that are used as reference standards in pharmaceutical manufacturing skyrocketed 1,733% from mid-March to mid-April compared with the year before, but has since dropped 52% in the week of April 24 to April 30 compared to the week prior, according to USP data.
The swift embrace and rapid abandonment of hydroxychloroquine underlines how publicity of evolving science can have unpredictable consequences on the behavior of physicians and patients. The episode also shows how supply chains and government agencies struggle to keep up with such changes, especially when one perspective is amplified by the president.
THE FUROR over the drugs has been costly for patients with chronic autoimmune diseases. They struggled to get access to treatment as Trump’s daily endorsements caused prescriptions to surge, though some of the strain has shown signs of receding.
“Within the last few days we have seen a drop in calls and emails expressing concern and challenges accessing hydroxychloroquine,” Mike Donnelly, a spokesman for the Lupus Foundation of America, said. “We have also heard that people who had trouble getting their refill at first are now able to.”
Some lupus patients are still struggling to access their medication or are being told they can only get 14-day refills, he said.
