WASHINGTON _ President Donald Trump said Monday that he is taking hydroxychloroquine, after consulting with the White House physician about the drug, which is approved for treating malaria and lupus but has not been proved as a treatment for the coronavirus.
Trump told reporters during a meeting with restaurant executives that he has had "zero symptoms" of COVID-19 and has always tested negative for the disease. But he said he decided, "what do you have to lose?" and began taking hydroxychloroquine.
For weeks since the United States locked down due to the pandemic, Trump has publicly advocated that people severely ill from the coronavirus take the drug.
