Donald Trump, the President of the United States is a strong advocate of using Hydroxychloroquine for the treatment of Coronavirus patients. Trump calls it the Magic Drug. However, a New York woman with coronavirus symptoms died last week after the usage of Hydroxychloroquine and Azithromycin.
Hydroxychloroquine is typically used to treat malaria and lupus. Azithromycin — better known as a Z-pack — is an antibiotic. India is one of the largest producers of HCQ in the world and exports $50m worth of it every year. The Modi Government banned the export initially but later eased it due to the pressure from Trump.
The announcement on the lifting of the ban came hours after Trump warned India of retaliatory action if the drug is not supplied to the US. The first shipment of HCQ was already delivered to the United States. India is exporting the drug to more than 50 countries now.
Interestingly, The Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) Tuesday warned against an inordinate use of hydroxychloroquine. The apex research body issued an advisory saying tht “The medicine should not be taken without the supervision of the doctor”. They only approved its restricted use for “emergency situations”.
