‘Worst Year Ever’ Asks: Is Hydroxychloroquine Really A Cure For Covid?

On this episode of Worst Year Ever, Cody, Katie, Robert, and Gabe talk about hydroxychloroquine, touted as a coronavirus “miracle cure” by President Trump and many others. But taking a closer look at the clinical trials and studies that have been done, as well as the money behind the medicine, might make you think twice about how useful it actually is. And while most news outlets refer to the drug as a malaria treatment, it’s more commonly used to treat the autoimmune disease lupus. So they interview a woman named Abby, living with lupus, about her experiences with the drug before and after it was called a cure for corona.

A good clinical trial normally involves a large number of people tested, with half given the drug being studied and half – called a “control group” – given a placebo. But several of the most quoted studies about hydroxychloroquine only tested a small handful of patients (between 30 and 80), and completely lacked a control group. Worse than that, in at least three of the studies, several of the patients died. Turns out, hydroxychloroquine has detrimental side effects for people with heart issues – and in America, that means nearly 30 million people could have a cardiac event if given this medication. So, rather than a “miracle cure,” the data actually shows that it "may have a mild to moderate effect on a subset of the population without a history of heart disease," and some strong data showing it can be toxic and potentially fatal to those with heart concerns. 

So why did Trump and so many others latch onto the drug so quickly? Why continue to push it? The answer may be to follow the money. It's been reported that Trump, and several of his associates, have a financial stake in the company that makes hydroxychloroquine. But it’s important to note that their interest is “virtually negligible,” because it’s part of a mutual fund controlled by an independent trust. Trump may not even know that he holds any stock in it. So what we’re seeing is the same pharmaceutical lobbying as always, our hosts say, rather than a concerted effort by Trump & Friends to make money for themselves. But they do uncover some interesting characters behind the push for hydroxychloroquine, including a guy named Joe Pizza who wrote a musical about himself called All About Joe; learn more about these clinical trials, what’s really going on with this drug, and much more on this episode of Worst Year Ever. 

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