As people continue to get sick and even die from COVID-19, a physicians and surgeons group shared concerns that some state governments are hoarding supplies of hydroxychloroquine (HCQ).
The drug, originally used to treat malaria, has been distributed to states throughout the nation.
Despite an increasing number of physicians and scientists believing HCQ can help in saving lives, doses of it are not being made available, The Association of American Physicians & Surgeons (AAPS) said.
“Medication is not doing anyone any good sitting in a government warehouse,” Dr. Jane Orient, vice president for the AAPS, said in the announcement. “This hoarding by government means most of the medication will probably expire without ever being used.”
Among the states with stockpiles of HCQ are North Carolina, Louisiana, Oklahoma, Utah, Ohio, New York, Connecticut, Oregon, Texas, Florida, Maryland, Pennsylvania, South Dakota, California and Washington D.C.
States such as Oklahoma have spent $2 million to purchase HCQ. Others have had doses donated such as Ohio, which received its supply from a private company the Des Moines Register reported.
As of May 5, more than 71,000 deaths related to COVID-19 had been reported in the U.S., according to the Johns Hopkins University Center for Systems Science and Engineering. The AAPS claimed few of those patients received treatment with HCQ.
More than 90% of the 2,300 plus people the association said received HCQ showed either clinical improvement or never got sick.
HCQ also has been used proactively in other nations including India to successfully protect workers, the AAPS said. In the U.S., that is not the case. Some states have stockpiled the drug to prevent it from being hoarded. Those states say hoarding would make it difficult for those with Lupus who depend on HCQ for treatment.
The AAPS believes state governments should stop stockpiling the drug and allow it to be used more extensively in the fight against the coronavirus. The states have concerns over side effects.
“The states and the federal government are reacting in light of that fear, but it's not a rational response,” Dr. Kenneth B. Klein, a consultant from Washington, told the Des Moines Register.
