Fact Check: Trump Lied and People Died (from Hydroxychloroquine)?

Background:

An Arizona man is dead and his wife was hospitalized after the couple ingested a form of chloroquine, a chemical that has been hailed recently by President Trump as a possible “game changer”
— NPR on 3/24/2020

An Arizona man and his wife ingested a fish tank cleaning additive made with the same active ingredient as chloroquine phosphate, which President Trump has referred to as a “game changer.”
— New York Times on 3/24/2020

Arizona man dies, wife ill after taking drug touted as virus treatment: “Trump kept saying it was basically pretty much a cure”
— CBS News on 3/24/2020

Compare those to the original report from NBC News:

The toxic ingredient they consumed was not the medication form of chloroquine, used to treat malaria in humans. Instead, it was an ingredient listed on a parasite treatment for fish. [Without consulting a doctor, the couple] decided to mix a small amount of [their koi fish treatment with soda] and drink it as a way to prevent the coronavirus.
— NBC News on 3/23/2020

“We’re also implementing the trial drug we have secured 70,000 hydro chloroquine 10,000 zithromax from the federal government. I want to thank the FDA for moving very expeditiously to get us this supply. The President ordered the FDA to move and the FDA moved. […] The President is optimistic about this about these drugs and we are all optimistic that it could work. I’ve spoken with a number of health officials and there is a good basis to believe that they could work. […] We don’t know, but let’s find out and let’s find out quickly. And, I agree with the President on that” — New York Governor Andrew Cuomo 3/22/2020

Trump stated his optimism for the drugs and thanked the FDA for rapidly working to determine if they were safe and effective. New York governor Andrew Cuomo made similar remarks.

Information published in the International Journal for Antimicrobial Agents showed hydroxychloroquine with azithromycin was “significantly associated with viral load reduction/disappearance in COVID-19 patients.” Though randomized clinical trials were not yet completed, initial positive results were published by Nature’s Cell Research Journal, Bioscience Trends, Journal of Critical Care, Food and Drug Administration (FDA), World Health Organization (WHO), and others.

However, in conjunction with the misleading reports from New York Times, NPR, CBS, and others, multiple states restricted/threatened doctors and pharmacists against using the drugs.

No pharmacist shall dispense hydroxychloroquine or chloroquine except when written as prescribed for an FDA-approved indication; or as part of a state approved clinical trial related to COVID-19 for a patient who has tested positive for COVID-19, with such test result documented as part of the prescription. No other experimental or prophylactic use shall be permitted
— New York Governor Andrew Cuomo on 3/23/2020

However, those governors soon reversed themselves. On 3/27/2020, NY Governor Cuomo modified his restriction, to allow hospitals to use (hydroxy)chloroquine:

for patients in inpatient settings and acute settings; for residents in a subacute part of a skilled nursing facility; or as part of an study approved by an Institutional Review Board.
— New York Governor Andrew Cuomo on 03/27/2020

NV Governor Sisolak’s administration clarified on 3/25/2020 that, although the governor’s statement and their press release made no mention of it, the restriction exempted hospitals. Here’s the original statement:

Today, I signed an emergency regulation limiting the prescription & issuance of two drugs that have unproven results with treating COVID-19
— Nevada Governor Steve Sisolak on 3/24/2020

MI Governor Whitmer’s administration seemed to deny the existing evidence:

Prescribing hydroxychloroquine or chloroquine without further proof of efficacy for treating COVID-19 […] will be evaluated and may be further investigated for administrative action. […] Again, these are drugs that have not been proven scientifically or medically to treat COVID-19.
— Michigan Administration for Governor Gretchen Whitmer on 3/24/2020

“We want to ensure that doctors have the ability to prescribe these medicines […] We obviously want to be nimble in this crisis […] No one could predict that we would be in this position a week ago” — Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer 3/30/2020

However, contrary to the restriction from Michigan’s Department of Licensing Regulatory Affairs (LARA), Whitmer’s administration was simultaneously “pursuing a request” for chloroquine to treat COVID-19. On 3/30/2020, MI Governor Whitmer also reversed course and stated her administration wants “to be nimble.”

These state-imposed restrictions were in opposition to the FDA’s effort to “facilitate development of treatments”, such as chloroquine, announced on 3/19/2020. The FDA continued this effort with patient guidance and authorization:

[The FDA issued authorization] to allow hydroxychloroquine sulfate and chloroquine phosphate products donated to the Strategic National Stockpile (SNS) to be distributed and used for certain hospitalized patients with COVID-19
— FDA Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) for Therapeutics on 3/28/2020

Based on the totality of scientific evidence available to FDA, it is reasonable to believe that chloroquine phosphate and hydroxychloroquine sulfate may be effective in treating COVID-19
— FDA Chief Scientist, RADM Denise M. Hinton on 3/28/2020

Supposed feud between Trump and Fauci

Dr. Anthony Fauci, one of the lead members of the White House Coronavirus Task Force, was published in the New England Journal of Medicine:

a variety of investigational approaches are being explored. Among these are the antiviral medication lopinavir–ritonavir, interferon-1β, the RNA polymerase inhibitor remdesivir, chloroquine, and a variety of traditional Chinese medicine products.
NEJM: Covid-19 — Navigating the Uncharted on 3/26/2020

Chris Stigall interviewed Dr. Fauci on 3/25/2020:

Philadelphia’s Morning Answer with Chris Stigall — interview with Dr. Anthony Fauci 3/25/2020 (interview begins at time 1:52:00)

Stigall: Do you like working with this President?

Dr. Fauci: Yes, I do! […] I do enjoy working with him.

Stigall: [Is it possible you are] frustrating his agenda?

Dr. Fauci: That is completely untrue. I meet with him virtually every day. […] He listens. I’ve never had a situation where I’ve strongly suggested something to him that he rejected. […] I think this idea of a conflict between the two of us is just absolutely not based on any reality.

Stigall: I have heard you say it is dangerous [to extrapolate numbers from other countries]

Dr. Fouci: Every country is different and it depends on a lot of things. […] It originated in China. How you respond […] has a great impact on what ultimately would happen. Unfortunately for Italy, they did not do that right away. It was kind of an open country [..] and before they knew it, the had a lot of cases that got out of control. One of the things we did that was very important, was when the President decided early on to shut down the influx of travel from China and then subsequently […] from the European countries. […] It would have been much worse had we not done that.

Stigall:Are [hydroxychloroquine and chloroquine] showing promise?

Dr. Fauci: The data that indicate that are really anecdotal and not proven. […] It could work, that is a possibility, [but not definitive] We can say let’s try it, it might work, there’s nothing wrong with that, but make sure we try it under the appropriate conditions.

Stigall: If a patient with coronavirus [wants to try hydroxychloroquine], would you prescribe it?

Dr. Fauci: Yeah, of course! I mean, particularly if people have no other option. You want to give them hope. […] Physicians throughout the country can prescribe that in an off-label way.

Conclusion

The available information shows Trump’s support for hydroxychloroquine was honest, merited, and similar to remarks by Dr. Fauci.