With the way cable news people talk about hydroxychloroquine, you’d think it was an exotic herb mixed into a potion recipe passed down only in spoken word by aboriginal Australians, rather than what it actually is — a government-regulated drug that’s been prescribed by medical doctors for decades to treat multiple conditions.

President Trump said this week that his doctor cleared him to start taking the drug as a potential prophylactic against the coronavirus. He also pushed it as a possible “line of defense” that might be used more widely if it proves effective.

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