The video, which has already been banned by other social media platforms, features a group of people who call themselves “America’s Frontline Doctors.” Among them is a Houston-based physician named Stella Immanuel, MD, who claims that she’s treated 350 coronavirus patients using the anti-malarial drug hydroxychloroquine and that “none of them had died.” Immanuel calls the drug a “cure” for COVID-19. “The truth will set us all Free!,” wrote Madonna in the caption. “But some people don’t want to hear the truth.” Though there is some evidence that hydroxychloroquine has been effective in some cases, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has made clear that there are dangerous side effects that come with COVID-19 patients taking hydroxychloroquine. On June 15, the FDA revoked the emergency use authorization (EUA) for hydroxychloroquine as a COVID-19 treatment in certain hospitalized patients. Their determination was “based on recent results from a large, randomized clinical trial… that found these medicines showed no benefit for decreasing the likelihood of death or speeding recovery.” Here’s the FDA’s most recent update on hydroxychloroquine, from July 1:ae0fcc31ae342fd3a1346ebb1f342fcb Madonna isn’t the only famous person to share the controversial video. Both President Donald Trump and Donald Trump, Jr., both shared the “America’s Frontline Doctors” video on Twitter earlier this week. As a result, Trump, Jr.’s account was suspended for 12 hours for sharing misinformation. The president’s account, however, received no such consequence. RELATED: For more up-to-date information, sign up for our daily newsletter. Since the video surfaced, questions have been raised about Dr. Immanuel and her nontraditional medical beliefs. (Among them, according to The Daily Beast, Dr. Immanuel once claimed that DNA from outer-space aliens has been used in modern medicine.) In an appearance today on CNN, former CDC Detective, Seema Yasmin, MD., described Dr. Immanuel’s comments as “false information” and even “extremely dangerous.” And for more perspective on this controversial drug, don’t miss what America’s leading immunologist, Dr. Fauci, has to say about hydroxychloroquine.
