Trump Says He’s Been Taking Anti-Malarial Drug Hydroxychloroquine and Zinc

President Donald Trump walks across the South Lawn upon return to the White House in Washington on May 17, 2020. Mandel Ngan/AFP/Getty Images

President Donald Trump said Monday he has been taking the anti-malarial drug hydroxychloroquine and zinc to prevent being infected with COVID-19.

“I happen to be taking it,” Trump said during a roundtable event at the White House. “A lot of good things have come out. You’d be surprised at how many people are taking it, especially the front-line workers.”

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The president added, “I’m taking it, hydroxychloroquine. Right now, yeah. Couple of weeks ago, I started taking it. Cause I think it’s good, I’ve heard a lot of good stories.”

The drug has been touted by Trump as a possible treatment in fighting the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus, a novel coronavirus that emerged in China last year. Hydroxychloroquine is also used to treat lupus and rheumatoid arthritis.

There have been several clinical trials to see whether the drug is effective in fighting the virus. A recent study conducted by New York University’s School of Medicine found that a combination of hydroxychloroquine and zinc has been effective in some virus patients.

And a new trial evaluating the combination of hydroxychloroquine and azithromycin against the virus started, Dr. Anthony Fauci, a member of the White House pandemic task force, announced last week.

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has cautioned against taking hydroxychloroquine and chloroquine to treat the virus outside of a hospital setting or in a clinical trial. The agency said the drug can cause abnormal heart rhythms or create a rapid heart rate.

Trump told reporters that he has been taking the medication daily for about 10 days. The White House physician “didn’t recommend” the drug but still offered it to him, the president remarked, adding that he has had no side-effects from the drug and zero symptoms of COVID-19.

Tablets on a blister pack of Plaquinol (Hydroxychloroquine) are displayed in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, on April 10, 2020. Buda Mendes/Getty Images

“I’m not [going to] get hurt by it. It’s been around for 40 years,” Trump said, adding that “you'd be surprised at how many people are taking” the drug. “For malaria, for lupus, for other things. I take it. Front-line workers take it. A lot of doctors take it.”

He doesn’t own stock in the firm that produces the drug, Trump said, adding that he wants Americans to not get sick.

“I don’t want them feeling sick. And there’s a very good chance that this has an impact, especially early on,” he said. “I take a pill every day. At some point, I’ll stop. What I’d like to is I’d like to have the cure and or the vaccine and that’ll happen I think very soon.”

The president told reporters that aside from taking the drug, he is being tested for the CCP virus every day. So far, he’s tested negative.