By Howard Fischer | Capitol Media Services via Arizona Capitol Times
Gov. Doug Ducey won’t rescind his order denying Arizonans access to a drug to prevent COVID-19 that is now being used by President Trump.
The April 2 directive bars pharmacists from dispensing hydroxychloroquine or chloroquine unless they have a prescription from a doctor saying the patient actually has the virus. And even in that case, the governor limited the prescription to no more than a 14-day supply, with no refills without a new prescription.
It’s even more specific than that. It spells out that prophylactic prescriptions for the drug — essentially prescribing it to keep people who don’t have COVID-19 from getting it — “are strictly prohibited unless peer-reviewed evidence citing prophylactic evidence becomes available.”
And to date the only published study involves 62 patients in China taking hydroxychloroquine where the authors said the potential of the drug in treatment “has been partially confirmed.” But they also said there is the need for large-scale clinical and basic research.
The sole exception in Ducey’s April 2 order denying prescriptions for chloroquine and hydroxychloroquine are for patients taking the drug “for treatment other than COVID-19.”
