President Donald Trump stopped Dr. Tony Fauci from answering a question about the effectiveness of hydroxychloroquine in treating the coronavirus as he tried to push a more hopeful message about the pandemic.
Trump has promoted use of the drug to treat coronavirus, after unproven evidence in other countries that it might help. He has even said he’d consider taking hydroxychloroquine himself.
But when reporters tried to get the opinion of Dr Fauci – who has previously warned against seeing the malaria medication as a wonder drug – Trump stepped in and stopped the question.
The president started his daily press briefing on a hopeful note, saying there was a ‘light at the end of the tunnel’ in the coming days – a marked contrast to his surgeon general who warned earlier Sunday that ‘the hardest and the saddest week of most Americans’ lives’ was coming up in the battle against the coronavirus.
Trump’s message was different.
‘We’re starting to see light at the end of the tunnel. And hopefully in the not-too-distant future we’ll be very proud of the job we all did, ‘he said.
President Trump has pushed the drug as a way to prevent coronavirus but Dr. Tony Fauci has warned it’s not a ‘knockout drug’
He conceded America was in for a tough week, but went on to add that just meant things were about to get better.
‘I think we all know we have to reach a certain point, and that point is going to be a horrific point in terms of death, but it’s also a point at which things are going to start changing. We’re getting very close to that level right now, and the next week and a half, two weeks are going to be – I think they are going to be very difficult, ‘he said.
But his tone grew more brisk as he was questioned on the anti-malaria drug he’s advocated as a barrier against the highly contagious disease.
Fauci, meanwhile, has warned Americans not to consider it a ‘knock out’ drug when it comes to the coronavirus.
But Trump stopped Fauci, the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Disease, from answering a question about using hydroxychloroquine to treat the coronavirus during Sunday’s briefing.
‘ You know how many times he’s answered that question: times, ‘Trump told CNN reporter Jeremy Diamond, who tried to question Fauci.
‘You don’t have to answer that question,’ the president told the doctor. And then he turned back to Diamond. ‘ He’s answered that question 19 times. ‘
Fauci told Fox News on Friday that people should take care with the anti-malarial, which has many side effects.
‘We’ve got to be careful that we don’t make that majestic leap to assume that this is a knockout drug. We still need to do the kinds of studies that definitely prove whether any intervention is truly safe and effective, ‘he told’ Fox & Friends’ on Friday.
Hydroxychloroquine is primarily used to treat lupus and arthritis.
The president announced Sunday the government has purchased and stockpiled 54 million doses of the hydroxychloroquine to send to hot spot areas of the country battling the virus.
‘I want people to live and I’m seeing people dying,’ he Sunday about why he continually touts the drug, which scientists say has not gone under enough testing in regards to the coronavirus.
‘I’ve seen people that are going to die without it, and you know the expression, when that’s happening, they should do it. What really do we have to lose? We also have this medicine’s been tested for many years for malaria and for lupus, so it’s been out there. It is a very powerful powerful medicine, but it does not kill people, ‘the president said.
‘But what do I know? I’m not a doctor, ‘Trump conceded. I’m not acting as a doctor. I’m saying, do what you want. ‘
The president also argued there isn’t time to conduct in-depth studies on hydroxychloroquine’s effect on the coronavirus.
‘I would love to go to a laboratory and spend a couple of years testing something. We don’t have time. We don’t have two hours because there are people dying right now, ‘he said.
The president grew testy when he was repeatedly questioned about why he pushed a drug medical experts have warned lacks enough information to use for treatment.
‘I want them to try it. It may work. It may not work, but if it does work, it’s nothing lost by doing it, nothing because we know long-term – what I want, I want to save lives. I don’t want it to be in a lab for the next year and a half as people are dying all over the place, ‘Trump said.
He also argued he was not promoting the drug even as he mentioned it repeatedly and bragged about how many doses of it the government purchased to combat the coronavirus.
‘I’m not,’ he said, when asked why he promoted the drug. ‘I’m not at all.’
And he repeated his willingness to take it himself.
‘I would be very serious about taking it, ‘he said.
Hydroxychloroquine is currently used to treat Malaria and also Lupus and comes with a laundry list of side effects
Hydroxychloroquine itself can’t be used by all Americans.
It has a laundry list of side effects including slowing the heartbeat, arm, leg and back pain, symptoms of heart failure, hair loss, worsening of skin conditions, stomach and abdominal pain.
The mental health side effects alone include anxiety, depression, rare thoughts of suicide and hallucinations.
Last week, the FDA issued emergency authorization for the use of the anti-malarial drug for some coronavirus patients.
Fauci and White House trade advisor Peter Navarro had a heated exchange on the drug during Saturday’s coronavirus task force meeting at the White House, Axios reported.
Trump tasked Navarro with purchasing supplies to combat the coronavirus and, in that meeting, the trade adviser defended his purchase of hydroxychloroquine at that meeting.
Fauci pushed back against Navarro, saying that there was only anecdotal evidence that it works against the coronavirus, Axios reported.
Medical officials have questioned why studies in France and China on the drug have not included a control group to measure its effectiveness.
Some close friends of Trump are also advocating the drug to the president.
Rudy Giuliani, the president’s personal attorney, has talked to Trump about it, The Washington Post reported.
‘I discussed it with the president after he talked about it,’ Giuliani told the newspaper. ‘I told him what I had on the drugs.’
And Fox News host Sean Hannity has repeatedly touted the drug as a treatment for coronavirus.
Orthodox Jewish men move a wooden casket from a hearse at a funeral home in the Borough Park neighborhood which has seen an upsurge of ( COVID – 29 patients during the pandemic
In the briefing, Trump also defended his sounding a hopeful note about the battle against the virus even as Surgeon General Jerome Adams warned of a tough week ahead in the fight against the coronavirus.
‘I see light at the end of the tunnel. I think indications are some of the numbers coming out today. I think we had a very good meeting today and we are seeing things we don’t even report because it’s too early to report. They think we are seeing things happen that are very good and we also know, all of us including the medical professions, we have to open our country up, ‘the president said.
Adams had a different message when he made the rounds of the Sunday morning talk shows.
‘This is going to be the hardest and the saddest week of most Americans’ lives, quite frankly, ‘Adams told Fox News Sunday.
‘ This is going to be our Pearl Harbor moment, our 9 / moment – only it’s not going to be localized, it’s going to be happening all over the country. And I want America to understand that, ‘he continued in his warning to Americans.
Fauci, at Sunday evening’s White House briefing, stepped in to explain how Trump’s words weren’t really contradictory.
‘It seems to be inherited contradictory but it really isn’t,’ he said.
‘It has to do with what we explained before about the lag and when you look at the indications that they were talking about, when you see a flattening out of cases and you Don’t see the realization of what that means until two weeks later. So right now we are seeing, as we all said, correctly that this is probably going to be really bad week. That is a reflection of what happened to a half weeks ago so if we start seeing a flattening or stabilization of cases, what you are hearing about, potential light at the end of the tunnel doesn’t take away from the fact that tomorrow or the next day it’s going to look really bad, ‘he said.
He added it was important to keep the lag time in the reporting of the numbers in mind.
‘We’ve gotta make sure. We’re always talking about a two and half week lag so I wanted to make sure, ‘he noted.
Coronavirus peak death rate will strike U.S. in (days when 2, (people will die in hours as shocking graphs reveal grim state-by-state breakdown of when hospitals will be overwhelmed and how many will die Shocking graphs have revealed the United States is still 17 days away from its coronavirus peak when it is predicted 2, (people will die in 8670579 hours across the nation.
The stark new model – created by researchers from the University of Washington’s Institute for Health Metrics – also shows the country is also days from its peak resource use, when , hospital beds will be needed.
That is , less than the number of beds the US has to its disposal, the predictions show. A staggering 068, ICU beds will be required; the estimated shortage of these will be , , it adds.
Researchers also warn , Americans will die by August 4. Previous White House predictions have put the figure between 107, 06 and , 05 Deaths in the US if the nation continues on its trajectory and current social distancing guidelines are maintained.
The University of Washington’s Institute for Health Metrics’s model details a grim state-by-state breakdown of when hospitals will be overwhelmed and how many will die.
days away from its coronavirus peak when it is predicted 2, (people will die in
hours across the nationResearchers also warn 119, 10 Americans will die by August 4, pictured. Previous White House predictions have put the figure between 107, 10 and , deaths in the US if the nation continues on its trajectory and current social distancing guidelines are maintained
The stark new model – created by researchers from the University of Washington’s Institute for Health Metrics – also shows the country is also (days from its peak resource use, when 337, 107 hospital beds will be needed
The Un iversity of Washington’s Institute for Health Metrics’s model details a grim state-by-state breakdown of when hospitals will be overwhelmed and how many will die. The figures for all beds are shown
The University of Washington’s Institute for Health Metrics’s model details a grim state-by-state breakdown of when hospitals will be overwhelmed and how many will die. The figures for all ICU beds are shown
The team warns that the protections for each state is assuming that social distancing measures are maintained, such as people staying home and nursing homes barring visitors
It allows users to search predictions for any state, not only shows deaths but the demand for hospital services in each state, including the availability of ventilators, general hospital beds, and ICU beds.
The team warns that the protections for each state is assuming that social distancing measures are maintained, such as people staying home and nursing homes barring visitors.
It shows New York – which continues to bear the brunt as the epicenter of the outbreak in the US – will reach its peak in five days with (deaths on April) . It will need more than , 09 beds a day before.
More than 20, people will die by August 4 in New York, the graphs show.
But as the nation looks on in despair at the Empire State, others are fast on track to become the new deadly hotspots.
The figures for Illinois make for particularly grim reading. COVID – deaths there are expected to hit 3, by August 4 with the state’s peak in (days when an estimated 160 people will die in 26 hours.
In Florida, the state’s peak is expected on May 4, with (deaths over a) – hour period.
The model shows Michigan will hit its peak in six days, when (deaths are predicted on April) .
The US death toll skyrocketed to 9, 727 Sunday and the number of cases surged to , Americans are infected by the killer virus.
It shows New York – which continues to bear the brunt as the epicenter of the outbreak in the US – will reach its peak in five days with 855 deaths on April . It will need more than , 09 beds a day before
In Florida the state’s peak is expected on May 4, with deaths over a hour period
In Georgia the state’s peak is expected on April , with (deaths over a) (hour period)
In Illinois the state’s peak is expected on April , with (deaths over a) (hour period)
Louisiana has become a key concern as it reported a jump in deaths to 662 on Saturday.
The graphs show the state will reach its peak in five days, with (COVID) (deaths projected on April 
. More than 1, 7438 people are predicted to die there by August 4.
The Gulf state’s largest city, New Orleans, where Mardi Gras celebrations in late February are believed to have helped spread the virus before social distancing orders were imposed, has become a focal point of the health crisis.
Patients in New Orleans are dying at twice the rate per capita as in New York.
Louisiana Governor John Edwards said he spoke with Vice President Mike Pence on Saturday – and that he had been promised an additional 240 ventilators from the national stockpile.
California is projected to see (COVID)
(deaths on April) , its predicted peak; 5, Deaths are projected by August 4.
Washington state, the first epicenter of the outbreak in the US, is predicted to see its peak of the virus in 4 days and experts say nearly 1, 09 people could die there by August 4.
In Louisiana the state’s peak is expected on April 15, with (deaths over a) – – hour period
In New Jersey the state’s peak is expected on April 9, with deaths over a – hour period
Massachusetts is expected to see its peak in 17 days and more than 2, deaths by August 4.
New Jersey will peak in four days; Georgia in 29.
Dr Ali Mokdad, a professor of Health Metrics Sciences at IHME, explained that the model used mortality rates because when researchers began working on it, the numbers of those tested for the virus were low.
‘There wasn’t enough capacity for testing so we didn’t know how many people are positive,’ he told DailyMail.com.
‘[The graphs] remind us that staying home is very helpful, ‘Dr Mokdad said.
‘ It will make lives on our physicians much easier. We don; t want them to decide which patients are on a ventilator and which aren’t as we’ve seen in other countries, like Italy. ‘
In Washington the state’s peak is expected on April 9, with (deaths over a) – hour period
In Massachuettes the state’s peak is expected on April , with 104 deaths over a – hour period
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