UPDATE/CORRECTION DECEMBER 14 2020: This article was corrected. A previous version of this story did not include the meeting results for either ADOPTION or NON-ADOPTION of the resolution. This RESOLUTION was included with many others presented at a Special Meeting of the AMA in November 2020. RESOLUTIONS are generated by AMA delegates/delegations, the AMA Board of Trustees, AMA Councils and AMA Sections. The RESOLUTION must be accepted and this resolution was not accepted. The RESOLUTION was reaffirmed. See the disclosure on this page referencing items to be considered by the House.
CHICAGO, IL – The American Medical Association (AMA) was considering rescinding a previous statement against the use of Hydroxychloroquine (HCQ) in the treatment of COVID-19 patients. Previously , the AMA had issued a statement in March that was highly critical of HCQ in regards to its use as a proposed treatment by some physicians in the early stages of COVID-19. In addition to discouraging doctors from ordering the medication in bulk for “off-label” use – HCQ is typically used to treat diseases such as malaria – they also claimed that there was no proof that it was effective in treating COVID, and that its use could be harmful in some instances.
“We caution hospitals, health systems, other entities, and individual practitioners that no medication has been FDA-approved for use in COVID-19 patients,” the AMA’s March statement reads in regards to HCQ and similar unconventional treatments. “Definitive evidence for the role of these drugs in treating COVID-19 patients has not been determined through robust clinical trials; decisions to use these medications off-label must be made with extreme caution and careful monitoring. Physicians, pharmacists, patients and policymakers must understand that these medications have dangerous side effects that may lead to patient harm, including fatal cardiac arrhythmias.”
Recently, included in materials presented for adoption (Resolution 509), the organization was considering a resolution to reverse their stance on HCQ, stating that its potential for good may supersede the threat of any potential harmful side effects.
“RESOLVED, That our American Medical Association rescind its statement calling for physicians to stop prescribing hydroxychloroquine and chloroquine until sufficient evidence becomes available to conclusively illustrate that the harm associated with use outweighs benefit early in the disease course,” the memo reads.
Nonetheless, the recommendation still left the door open for more research into HCQ and other alternative COVID-19 treatments in corporation with two national associations representing pharmacists.
“RESOLVED, That our AMA rescind its joint statement with the American Pharmacists Association and American Society of Health System Pharmacists, and update it with a joint statement notifying patients that further studies are ongoing to clarify any potential benefit of hydroxychloroquine and combination therapies for the treatment of COVID-19,” the memo said.
UPDATE: RECOMMENDED FOR NON ADOPTION
RESOLUTION 509 – HYDROXYCHLOROQUINE AND 7 COMBINATION THERAPIES – OFF-LABEL USE WAS RECOMMENDED FOR ADOPTION BUT WAS REAFFIRMED – HYDROXYCHLOROQUINE COMBINED WITH ZINC AND AZITHROMYCIN REMAINS A HOTELY DEBATED TOPIC WITH ONE STUDY SET TO BE PUBLISHED IN THE INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ANTIMICROBIAL AGENTS THIS MONTH, DECEMBER.
Dr. Simone Gold, widely known for her involvement in America’s Frontline Doctors and her mostly censored press conferences called “White Coat Summit’s” on the steps of the Supreme Court in Washington D.C., Gold, a board certified emergency physician and attorney called the association a “corrupt organization representing only a tiny number of physicians.”
IT IS CURRENTLY NOT KNOWN IF DOCTOR GOLD TWEETED THE RESOLUTION WHILE AWARE THAT IT WAS NOT YET OFFICIALLY ADOPTED BY AMA OR IF SHE KNEW IT WAS ONLY PROPOSED AND USED ITS PROPOSAL INTENTIONALLY TO CALL ATTENTION TO THE ISSUE. WE HAVE REACHED OUT TO GOLD AND HAVE NOT YET HEARD BACK. WE WILL ADD HER RESPONCE IF ONE IS FORTHCOMING.
In a recent interview Dr. Gold opined that a suppression of truth is an effort “coordinated at the highest levels” saying that experimental vaccines should be reserved for instances where there is a serious threat.
“It is fundamentally irrational to take an untested, unproven, untried, brand new medication of any sort when you have a tried and true medicine that has been around for decades.” Dr. Gold continued, “It is irrational to take an untested medication that is shielded from liability when you are perfectly healthy and the virus you are trying to prevent is non-lethal and you are highly likely to recover from it.”
The AMA, founded in 1847 and incorporated in 1897, is the largest association of physicians and medical students in the United States.
Related: Ingraham: The Truth About Hydroxychloroquine – Apr 22, 2020
UPDATE/CORRECTION DECEMBER 14 2020: This article was corrected. A previous version of this story did not include the meeting results for either ADOPTION or NON-ADOPTION of the resolution. This RESOLUTION was included with many others presented at a Special Meeting of the AMA in November 2020. RESOLUTIONS are generated by AMA delegates/delegations, the AMA Board of Trustees, AMA Councils and AMA Sections. The RESOLUTION must be accepted and this resolution was not accepted. The RESOLUTION was reaffirmed. See the disclosure on this page referencing items to be considered by the House.
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