Emergence of a Deadly Coronavirus

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The figures in the article are hypothetical but the example of South Korea is not. They did the "hammer" part: agressive testing, tracing and isolating; they are doing the "dance" part: adjusting partial restrictions to the situation.

I came across an interesting article about treating the coronavirus with an anti-malarial drug, hydroxychloroquine/chloroquin:

A Florida man hospitalized with the novel coronavirus claims an anti-malarial drug — one that President Trump has said is being tested as a possible treatment option but has not yet been approved — saved his life.

Rio Giardinieri, 52, told Fox 11 that he experienced a fever for five days, back pain, headache, cough, and tiredness after attending a work-related conference in New York. After returning home, he claims he was diagnosed with COVID-19 and pneumonia at Joe DiMaggio Children's Hospital in South Florida. He was reportedly hospitalized in the facility’s intensive care unit for more than a week, at which point he says his symptoms had not alleviated.

“I was at the point where I was barely able to speak and breathing was very challenging. I really thought my end was there. I had been through nine days of solid pain and for me, the end was there. So I made some calls to say in my own way goodbye to my friends and family,” Giardinieri said.

The man then claims a friend told him about a possible treatment option, an anti-malarial drug known as hydroxychloroquine.

The same drug has also been used to treat auto-immune diseases like lupus, according to the New York Post. Some researchers in France recently issued a statement detailing how a combination of the anti-malarial medication and antibiotics could be a vital weapon in the battle against the coronavirus. Trump has also touted the drug as a possible treatment, saying last week that he has pushed the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to test hydroxychloroquine and chloroquine, a similar drug, as possible treatment options. However, such use has yet to be approved by the federal agency.

An infectious disease doctor treating Giardinieri “gave me all the reasons why I would probably not want to try it because there are no trials, there’s no testing, it was not something that was approved.”

But, Giardinieri recalled, “I said, ‘look I don’t know if I’m going to make it until the morning,’ because at that point I really thought I was coming to the end because I couldn’t breathe anymore.”

Giardinieri said he then received the medication, during which time he felt like his heart was “beating out of his chest” and still experienced difficulty breathing.

The man claimed he was then given Benadryl and other drugs and later woke up like “nothing ever happened.” He now claims that his fever has dissipated and he is no longer in pain. He also told Fox 11 he is able to breathe more normally again. The episodes he experienced after being administered hydroxychloroquine were likely his body fighting off the infection rather than an adverse reaction to the medication itself, doctors reportedly told him.

“To me, there was no doubt in mind that I wouldn’t make it until morning,” Giardinieri said, noting he received the medication on Saturday and hopes to be able to leave the hospital in five days. “So to me, the drug saved my life.”

Source: Florida man with coronavirus claims anti-malarial drug saved his life

Kraftie it sounds like your state New York will be the first state to undergo trial with this protocol. Trials will start tomorrow.

New York State will start coronavirus drug trials Tuesday in an attempt to control the pandemic's impact on the state, said New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo.

New York is the hardest-hit state in the U.S. As of Monday afternoon, the state had 20,875 confirmed cases of COVID-19. During a news conference on Sunday, Cuomo announced that the state has acquired 70,000 doses of hydroxychloroquine, 10,000 doses of zithromax and 750,000 doses of chloroquine. The trials will start Tuesday, he said.

Hydroxychloroquine and chloroquine are antimalarial drugs. Zithromax, or azithromycin, is an antibiotic.

Source: New York State will start coronavirus drug trials

Mylan has restarted production of its hydroxychloroquine sulfate tablets at its West Virginia manufacturing facility as a potential treatment for COVID-19, the disease caused by the new coronavirus. The company plans to have product available by mid-April and thinks it can ramp up to 50 million tablets, which could treat more than 1.5 million people.

Chloroquine and hydroxychloroquine have been around for decades and are available as generics, so Mylan isn't likely to make very much selling generic hydroxychloroquine. Bayer is donating 3 million tablets of chloroquine to the U.S. government for potential use as a treatment for COVID-19.

Source: Mylan Ramps Up Production of Hydroxychloroquine as a Potential COVID-19 Treatment

In another article:

Teva Pharmaceutical plans to donate 10 million tablets of the malaria drug hydroxychloroquine sulfate as a potential treatment for COVID-19. That news follows a report from earlier this week that Bayer plans to donate 3 million tablets of the related drug chloroquine, which is more potent but has more hazardous side effects.

Teva has 6 million tablets on hand, which it plans to ship through wholesalers to hospitals by March 31, with the remaining doses expected to be ready within a month.

Hydroxychloroquine and chloroquine are best-known as treatments for malaria, which is caused by a parasite, not a virus. Hydroxychloroquine is also prescribed for autoimmune diseases. But recent studies reported on in the journal Nature have found both drugs inhibit the ability of the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus to replicate in the laboratory. How well the drug might do to help humans fight off the disease is still unknown, although initial reports have been positive.

Source: Teva Donating More Than 10 Million Doses of Hydroxychloroquine as Potential COVID-19 Treatment

If there is any shortage it will be short lived until the manufacturer's ramp up production.

My wife is a talented seamstress. The other day she made 30 face masks for distribution in nursing homes and the local hospital. Today we went up to my daughter's and she gave her a couple more bags of material so my wife can make more mask. When we arrived home my wife received a message that Jo Ann Fabrics had a call out to seamstresses to volunteer to make face mask for local nursing homes and hospitals. They would provide the fabric and elastic for free. The company would precut the fabric and the only thing the volunteers would need to do is put it together and bring it back so it would then be donated. They would even bring the materials out to your car.

I really don't think any shortage of face mask will exist much longer. Not with my wife hard a work.

You might even say she was volunteering for the war effort!

I'll just add that generic Hydrochloroquine does not work effectively for many patients with autoimmune disorders.

It is common that these patients require the name brand drug.

I certainly hope the generics can be used for corona trials, rather than the patented medication.