Nancy Pelosi Says ‘Morbidly Obese’ Trump Shouldn’t Take Hydroxychloroquine for Coronavirus

By Jordan Moreau

LOS ANGELES (Variety.com) – Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi said that President Trump shouldn’t be taking the antimalarial drug hydroxychloroquine because he’s “morbidly obese” and at risk for negative health effects

Pelosi made the comments on Monday night while speaking to Anderson Cooper on CNN. She expressed concern over Trump taking the drug, which some people believe is a treatment for coronavirus, but it has not been proven by medical experts or the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.

“He’s our president and I rather he not be taking something that has not been approved by the scientists, especially in his age group and his — shall we say weight group — morbidly obese, they say. I think it’s not a good idea,” she said.

Trump disclosed earlier on Monday that he has been taking daily doses of hydroxychloroquine for a week and a half. His physician, Sean P. Conley, said in a White House press release that he and the president think taking the drug is worth the possible harmful side effects.

“After numerous discussions he and I had regarding the evidence for and against the use of hydroxychloroquine, we concluded the potential benefit outweighed the relative risk,” Conley said.

Dr. Anthony Fauci, a senior member of the White House’s coronavirus task force, has also voiced his doubt about using hydroxychloroquine as a treatment for COVID-19 before it could be properly tested.