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U.S. NEWS Tuesday 16 June 2020
Continued from Front Trump aggressively pushed
FDA's move means that the drug beginning in the
shipments of the drugs ob- first weeks of the outbreak
tained by the federal gov- and stunned medical
ernment will no longer be professionals when he re-
distributed to state and lo- vealed he took the drug
cal health authorities for preemptively against infec-
use against the coronavi- tion. After Trump's repeat-
rus. The drugs are still avail- ed promotions, prescrip-
able for alternate FDA-ap- tions for hydroxychloro-
proved uses, so U.S. doctors quine soared, contributing
could still prescribe them to shortages for patients
for COVID-19 — a practice using the drugs for estab-
known as off-label prescrib- lished uses.
ing. No large, rigorous studies
Dr. Steven Nissen, a Cleve- have found the drugs safe
land Clinic researcher who or effective for preventing
has been a frequent FDA or treating COVID-19. And
adviser, agreed with the a string of recent studies
decision and said he would made clear they could do
not have granted emer- more harm than good.
gency access in the first Dr. Peter Lurie, a former
place. FDA associate commission-
"There has never been any er and an Obama adminis- This April 7, 2020 file photo shows a bottle of hydroxychloroquine tablets in Texas City, Texas.
high-quality evidence sug- tration appointee, said the Associated Press
gesting that hyrdoxychloro- agency had tarnished its
quine is effective" for treat- reputation by clearing the remdesivir, an intravenous warned doctors that it had spread use of the malaria
ing or preventing corona- drugs based on scant evi- drug that has been shown seen reports of danger- drugs. Rick Bright said he
virus infection, he said, but dence and under appar- to help severely ill, hospital- ous side effects and heart worked with FDA senior staff
there is evidence of serious ent political pressure. ized patients recover faster. problems reported to poi- to limit the drugs' authoriza-
side effects. "This is an agency that The FDA granted emer- son control centers and tion to patients hospitalized
On Thursday, a National In- gains its credibility from gency use of the drugs for other health systems. with COVID-19 and under
stitutes of Health panel of the strength of its scientific coronavirus patients in late The agency said it revoked professional supervision.
experts revised its recom- pronouncements," said Lu- March at the same time the authorization in consul- Among other issues, Bright
mendations to specifically rie, now president of the the U.S. government ac- tation with the Biomedical objected to the fact that
recommend against the nonprofit Center for Sci- cepted 30 million doses of Advanced Research and some of the doses import-
drug's use except in formal ence in the Public Interest. hydroxychloroquine and Development Authority, or ed were manufactured at
studies, and "that, I'm sure, "The lesson of this whole chloroquine that had been BARDA, which had request- facilities in India and Paki-
had influence on the FDA," tawdry episode is that it's donated by two foreign ed the emergency use. stan that had not been in-
Nissen said. the old, painstaking ways drug manufacturers. Mil- BARDA's former director spected by the FDA.
The actions by FDA and of science that ultimately lions of those doses were said in April that he was The FDA says it sampled
NIH send a clear signal to deliver safe and effective shipped to U.S. hospitals to removed from his job be- and tested the imported
health professionals against therapies." The only remain- treat patient who weren't cause he resisted political drugs to confirm they met
prescribing the drugs for ing drug with FDA authori- enrolled in clinical trials. pressure from Trump ap- the agency's standards for
coronavirus. zation against COVID-19 is But the FDA previously pointees to allow wide- safety and quality.q

Supreme Court for now stays out of police immunity debate

WASHINGTON (AP) — The finds that an official or of- crats in the wake of Floyd's
Supreme Court is for now ficer has violated some- death would make it easi-
declining to get involved in one's constitutional rights, er for injured individuals to
an ongoing debate by citi- they can still be protected claim damages in civil suits
zens and in Congress over from civil lawsuits seeking against police offices. The
policing, rejecting cases money. The Supreme Court White House, however, has
Monday that would have has said that qualified im- said that provision is a non-
allowed the justices to re- munity protects officials as starter and not likely to be
visit when police can be long as their actions don't part of a Senate Republi-
held financially responsible violate clearly established can bill that's in the works.
for wrongdoing. law or constitutional rights The push for the court to
With protests over racism which they should have reexamine qualified immu-
and police brutality con- known about. nity has come both from
tinuing nationwide, the The Supreme Court's deci- the left and right, includ-
justices turned away more The columns of the Supreme Court are seen with the Capitol at sion not to wade into the ing Thomas, a conserva-
than half a dozen cases right, in Washington, early Monday, June 15, 2020. qualified immunity debate tive, and Justice Sonia So-
involving the legal doc- Associated Press follows nationwide pro- tomayor, a liberal. In 2018,
trine known as qualified tests against racism and when the court said that
immunity, which the high comment in turning away our qualified immunity ju- police brutality sparked by an Arizona police officer
court created more than the cases, but Justice risprudence," he wrote, the death in Minnesota of who shot a knife-wielding
50 years ago. It shields offi- Clarence Thomas wrote explaining he believes the George Floyd, a 46-year- woman four times was im-
cials, including police, from a 6-page dissent saying court's "qualified immunity old black man who died mune from being sued, So-
lawsuits for money as a re- he would have agreed to doctrine appears to stray May 25 while being re- tomayor said the decision
sult for things they do in the hear one of the cases. from the statutory text." strained by a white officer. "sends an alarming signal
course of their job. "I have previously ex- As a result of qualified im- In Congress, a bill intro- to law enforcement offi-
As is usual the court didn't pressed my doubts about munity, even when a court duced by House Demo- cers and the public." q