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MURDER, POLITICS, AND THE END OF THE JAZZ AGE by Michael Wolraich Order today at Barnes & Noble / Amazon / Books-A-Million / Bookshop |
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By Ellen Gabler @ NYTimes.com, March 24
Doctors are hoarding medications touted as possible coronavirus treatments by writing prescriptions for themselves and family members, according to pharmacy boards in states across the country.
The stockpiling has become so worrisome in Idaho, Kentucky, Ohio, Nevada, Oklahoma, North Carolina, and Texas that the boards in those states have issued emergency restrictions or guidelines on how the drugs can be dispensed at pharmacies. More states are expected to follow suit.
“This is a real issue and it is not some product of a few isolated bad apples,” said Jay Campbell, executive director of the North Carolina Board of Pharmacy.
The medications being prescribed differ slightly from state to state, but include those lauded by President Trump at televised briefings as potential breakthrough treatments for the virus [....]
None of the drugs have been approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for that use. Some of them [....] are commonly used to treat malaria, lupus, rheumatoid arthritis and other conditions.
Pharmacists around the country have been swapping stories on social media about the spike in prescriptions written by doctors for themselves or their families.
“I have multiple prescribers calling in prescriptions for Plaquenil for themselves and their family members as a precaution. Is this ethical?” one person wrote on Sunday in a Facebook group for pharmacists, referring to a brand name of hydroxychloroquine. Others weighed in — some noting similar experiences — and expressed their hesitancy to dispense such prescriptions [....]
“Usually we’ll have 50 governors that will call it the same time. I think we are doing very well. But it’s a two-way street. They have to treat us well, also. They can’t say, “Oh, gee, we should get this, we should get that.” We’re doing a great job. Like in New York where we’re building, as I said, four hospitals, four medical centers. We’re literally building hospitals and medical centers. And then I hear that there’s a problem with ventilators. Well we sent them ventilators. And they could have had 15,000 or 16,000 – all they had to do was order them two years ago. But they decided not to do it. They can’t blame us for that.” Trump today on Fox News
By Jeffrey Gettleman & Kai Schultz from New Delhi @ NYTimes.com, March 24
With four hours’ notice, India’s prime minister announced that no one could leave their homes for 21 days — the most severe step taken anywhere in the war against the coronavirus.
@ BBC Africa live, March 23-24
10:30 Death of Zimbabwe broadcaster (30 yrs. old), a tragedy....
3:24 Nigeria confirms four more cases as flight ban starts...
2:31 Rwanda's coronavirus cases nearly double in a day....
1:54 Uganda confirms eight more cases of coronavirus....
1:12 Ghana confirms second death from coronavirus....
0:39 Senegal and Ivory Coast declare emergency over virus....
14:48 'We must do everything within our means'; South Africa's president announces tough coronavirus measures....
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