WASHINGTON: President Donald Trump worked to steady a fearful nation, reporting that his government had decided to fast-track therapeutic drugs that might hold potential to treat those suffering with COVID-19.

“More help is on the way,” Trump said at a White House briefing on the spread of the virus.

Trump and FDA commissioner Dr Stephen Hahn described several approaches under testing, such as chloroquine, a drug long used to treat malaria; remdesivir, an experimental antiviral that’s being tried in at least five separate experiments, and possibly antibodies culled from the blood of COVID-19 patients after they recover. But no new and imminent treatment was announced.

Chloroquine is widely available now and could be used off-label, but Hahn said officials want a formal study to get good information on safety and effectiveness.

Trump, who planned to visit the Federal Emergency Management Agency on Thursday, has invoked rarely used emergency powers to marshal critical medical supplies against the coronavirus pandemic. Trump also signed an aid package which the Senate approved on Wednesday that will guarantee sick leave to workers who fall ill.

Trump says he is expanding the nation’s diagnostic testing capacity and deploying a Navy hospital ship to New York City, which is rapidly becoming an epicenter of the pandemic, and another such ship to the West Coast.

On Wednesday the Senate overwhelmingly passed a second coronavirus response bill, which Trump signed Wednesday night.

The measure is also aimed at making tests for the virus free. The White House urged hospitals to cancel all elective surgeries to reduce the risk of being overwhelmed by cases.

Published in Dawn, March 20th, 2020