India Bans Export of Hydrochloroquine After Trump's COVID-19 Cure Claim - Reports
India has moved to ban the export of hydrochloroquine, a malaria drug recently touted by US President Donald Trump as a possible treatment for COVID-19, media reported Wednesday
NEW DELHI (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 25th March, 2020) India has moved to ban the export of hydrochloroquine, a malaria drug recently touted by US President Donald Trump as a possible treatment for COVID-19, media reported Wednesday.
According to the Times of India news outlet, India's government banned the export of the highly toxic drug amid the global demand for the limited resource.
In a White House press briefing on the coronavirus pandemic on Tuesday, Trump said that hydrochloroquine was a game-changer and that the food and Drug Administration had fast-tracked approval of the drug. This immediately moved companies and governments to clamp down on their supplies, according to various news outlets.
According to The Guardian newspaper, clinical trials for hydrochloroquine as a potential treatment option for COVID-19 have proved inconclusive.
The drug is extremely potent and can have severe side-effects if not administered properly.