What drug do doctors want Donald Trump to stop saying prevents COVID-19?

The drug that doctors want Donald Trump to stop saying prevents COVID-19 is hydroxychloroquine. This medication is primarily used to treat malaria and certain autoimmune conditions like lupus and rheumatoid arthritis. Early in the COVID-19 pandemic, hydroxychloroquine was widely discussed as a potential treatment, but subsequent clinical studies did not support its use for preventing or treating COVID-19 effectively.

The concerns arose from studies that revealed the drug did not significantly improve outcomes for COVID-19 patients and could lead to negative side effects, particularly when used outside of a hospital setting without proper oversight. Medical organizations and health experts emphasized that false claims regarding hydroxychloroquine as a preventive measure could lead to misinformation, improper use, and divert attention from evidence-based treatments and preventive measures, such as vaccines and established therapeutic protocols.

In contrast, ibuprofen is a common anti-inflammatory medication, and while there were questions about its use early in the pandemic, it wasn’t specifically claimed to prevent COVID-19. Azithromycin is an antibiotic sometimes mentioned in the context of COVID-19, but it is not a preventive drug. Remdesivir is an antiviral medication used for treating COVID-19 in hospital settings but does not prevent the virus. Thus, hydroxychloroquine