Hydroxychloroquine is a drug that’s a lifesaver for many lupus patients across Georgia. Unfortunately, these patients are now facing an uncertain landscape in which there are severe shortages of the drug in the future.
Hydroxychloroquine is familiar to most Americans who suffer from Lupus. Lupus is an autoimmune disease in which the body cells literally attack each other. There is no complete cure for lupus, and patients may suffer a variety of debilitating symptoms, including severe pain, organ damage and chronic fatigue. All of these symptoms mean that many patients are no longer able to earn a sustainable income, and have to apply for Social Security disability benefits.
Hydroxychloroquine is a life-saver for these patients, who may use the drug to alleviate some of the mind-numbing pain they can be subjected to on days when the flare ups are severe. When President Donald Trump touted the merits of hydroxychloroquine as a miracle drug to treat Covid-19, many states witnessed mass buying of the drug, by persons who believed that the drug could also work as a preventative measure. This hoarding has left lupus patients very nervous about the looming shortage of a drug that, for many of them, is the only way to get through the day.
Exports have insisted that there is no hard evidence pointing to the benefits of hydroxychloroquine in treating Covid-19. In fact, Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institutes of Allergy and Infectious Disease asserts that there is only anecdotal evidence indicating the benefits of using hydroxychloroquine to treat Covid-19. In fact, when used without adult supervision, there may actually be harmful side effects associated with the drug.
The bottom line is that medical supervision is absolutely necessary when using any type of drug, especially one that has proven side effects like hydroxychloroquine. If you do not suffer from lupus, you should not be hoarding a drug that is extremely essential to patients who suffer from lupus. Such hoarding is not just harmful to the lupus patients who might miss out on the drug, but also to you if you take the drug without medical supervision.