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Countries that allowed HCQ had much lower mortality than countries which restricted it - Digest from Peter Myers

(1) Countries that allowed HCQ had much lower mortality than countries which restricted it(2) 'These Two Charts Should Land Dr. Fauci In Prison'(3) Association of American Physicians & Surgeons injunction to compel FDA to release HCQ(4) Public pressure in 10 US states forces governors and pharmaceutical boards to lift restrictions on HCQ(5) The virus is inside the cell, the Zinc cannot get in, HCQ opens the door & lets the Zinc in; Zinc kills the virus(6) Zinc is key to HCQ; If people cannot take HCQ, Quercetin is a second option to move Zinc into cells(7) Uttar Pradesh (India) uses Ivermectin for prevention and treatment of Covid-19(8) Israel's 2nd wave exacerbated by ban on HCQ; it was allowed during 1st wave(9) Ronni Gamzu, Israel's coronavirus Projector, wanted to bar US yeshiva students from entry(10) Ultra-Orthodox Jews force Netanyahu to override Ronni Gamzu(11) How China & France discovered that HCQ beats Covid(1) Countries that allowed HCQ had much lower mortality than countries which restricted itVisit the link to see the chart - Peter M.https://sarahwestall.com/massive-international-hcq-study-shows-substantially-more-deaths-in-countries-not-using-hcq-early/Global HCQ studies. PrEP, PEP, and early treatment studies show high effectiveness, while late treatment shows mixed results.By Sarah Westall<https://c19study.com/> Massive international study looks at 70 Hydroxychloroquine (HCQ) studies of which 42 were peer reviewed. The results showed that countries with early use of HCQ (Costa Rica, Israel, India, Russia, Turkey, Algeria, Morocco, Indonesia, Ukraine, Greece, Cuba) had significantly less deaths than those countries that restricted widespread HCQ use (Mexico, USA, U.K., Sweden, Ireland, France, Netherlands, France). Study involves the populations of 2 billion people.The glaringly obvious question is how many lives would have been saved if our CDC, health "experts", and mass media, did not lie about the dangers of this live saving drug?Dr. Oskoui appears on the The Ingraham Angle with Laura Ingraham to explain and discuss this international study. He states there needs to  be consequences for the blatant disregard for medicines that save lives. Here is his specific statement:Dr. Oskoui: It’s really devastating to Dr. Fauci, Dr. Hahn, Dr. Redfield and their performance.  I think not only should they be embarrassed but I think they really need to be held to account…  Physicians have a fiduciary responsibility to act in the best interests of their patients. ==Here is the study, with charts:https://c19study.com/Global HCQ studies. PrEP, PEP, and early treatment studies show efficacy, while late treatment shows mixed results.(2) 'These Two Charts Should Land Dr. Fauci In Prison'Visit the link to see the charts - Peter M.https://fort-russ.com/2020/08/these-two-charts-should-land-dr-fauci-in-prison/Last updated Aug 7, 2020By Jim Hoft – for Gateway Pundit —The Association of American Physicians and Surgeons (AAPS) is a leading non-partisan professional association of physicians across the United States.Today the AAPS filed a motion for a preliminary injunction to compel the release to the public of hydroxychloroquine by the Food & Drug Administration (FDA) and the Department of Health & Human Services (HHS).Here are two charts that show hydroxychloroquine’s effectiveness in treating the coronavirus.Via AAPS from back in JuneAnd here is another chart proving the effectiveness of hydroxychloroquine.What makes things worse is the fact that the federal government, the FDA and HHS, are withholding 100 million doses of hydroxychloroquine that were donated to these agencies from the public.The government already has the drug! They only have to distribute it. In fact this letter below was sent out in June!  The doctors knew then hydroxychloroquine would treat COVID-19 and the government had a mountain of HCQ in storage!Fauci is pushing fraudulent information to the public. And tens of thousands of Americans have died due to his mistakes!(3) Association of American Physicians & Surgeons injunction to compel FDA to release HCQhttps://aapsonline.org/preliminary-injunction-sought-to-release-hydroxychloroquine-to-the-public/June 22, 2020Preliminary Injunction Sought to Release Hydroxychloroquine to the PublicToday the Association of American Physicians & Surgeons filed its motion for a preliminary injunction to compel release to the public of hydroxychloroquine by the Food & Drug Administration (FDA) and the Department of Health & Human Services (HHS), in AAPS v. HHS, No. 1:20-cv-00493-RJJ-SJB (W.D. Mich.). Nearly 100 million doses of hydroxychloroquine (HCQ) were donated to these agencies, and yet they have not released virtually any of it to the public.Millions of Americans fear attending political gatherings, religious services, and even large family get-togethers without the availability of early treatment if they were to contract COVID-19. Why should Americans have to wait until they or a loved one is on a ventilator before they gain access to medication to overcome this virus?"Why does the government continue to withhold more than 60 million doses of HCQ from the public?" asks Jane Orient, M.D., the Executive Director of AAPS. "This potentially life-saving medication is wasting away in government warehouses while Americans are dying from COVID-19."Today AAPS files its motion for a preliminary injunction to compel the government to release HCQ from its stockpile to the public, which could then immediately benefit from it. Reports of an uptick in COVID-19 in Arizona and elsewhere could then be handled without irrational, unjustified limitations on this medication imposed by the FDA.AAPS agrees with President Trump’s adviser Peter Navarro, Ph.D., who decries the obstruction by officials within the FDA to making this medication available to the public. President Trump himself has successfully taken this medication as a preventative measure, so why can’t ordinary Americans?"A perfect storm of politics in this presidential election year, along with conflicts of interest at the Defendant federal agencies, has resulted in unjustified obstacles to access to HCQ, an inexpensive medication having a track record of more than 75 years of safety," AAPS writes in its brief being filed today in federal court.AAPS files with the court a chart showing how countries that encourage HCQ use, such as South Korea, India, Turkey, Russia, and Israel, have been far more successful in combatting COVID-19 than countries that have banned or discouraged early HCQ use, as the FDA has. Last week the FDA even misled the public by falsely stating that HCQ should not be used to treat COVID-19, when multiple studies show its benefits, and thousands of patients have been successfully treated worldwide."The interference with public access to hydroxychloroquine is disrupting our political processes," notes AAPS General Counsel Andrew Schlafly. "Perhaps that is what some want, in order to deter Americans from attending political conventions and even voting, but it is unconstitutional for the FDA to infringe on these constitutional rights by blocking access to this safe medication."The Association of American Physicians and Surgeons (AAPS) has represented physicians of all specialties in all states since 1943. The AAPS motto is omnia pro aegroto, meaning everything for the patient.Documents:Memorandum in support of motion: https://aapsonline.org/judicial/aaps-v-fda-hcq-6-22-2020.pdfExhibit 1: Declaration of Jane M. Orient, M.D.: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1cxEESr-y0ckqRn81uV1zuF_r0A_faItq/view?usp=sharingExhibit 2: Declaration of Jeremy Snavely: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1ziyzFbeEPLv8_HnJxDeMkqb21s8j4MTx/view?usp=sharingOriginal complaint filed June 2: http://aapsonline.org/judicial/aaps-v-fda-hcq-6-2-2020.pdfFor PDFs of all Motions, Exhibits, and Supporting Documents see: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1oUeDIaqxodyaY68ABFoBv1n0xZBF-nLT?usp=sharingAAPS reply brief filed 7/20/2020: https://aapsonline.org/more-evidence-presented-for-why-hydroxychloroquine-should-be-made-available-in-a-new-court-filing-by-aaps/AAPS Motion to Expedite 7/30/2020: https://aapsonline.org/judicial/aaps-v-fda-hcq-7-30-2020.pdfhttps://finance.yahoo.com/news/fda-hoarding-life-saving-drugs-165100615.htmlFDA Is Hoarding Life-saving Drugs While Americans Die, States the Association of American Physicians & Surgeons (AAPS) in Lawsuit Association of American Physicians and SurgeonsSeptember 3, 2020TUCSON, Ariz., Sept. 02, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- In a brief filed Sep 1 in its case demanding that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) release the hydroxychloroquine (HCQ) in the Strategic National Stockpile (SNS) for public use, the Association of American Physicians & Surgeons (AAPS) writes:"[Defendants] care more about their power over the HCQ Stockpile than the lives being lost daily without access to it: ‘the injunction plaintiff seeks would irreversibly overturn the status quo, by compelling the government to disburse the hydroxychloroquine in the Stockpile—a step that, once taken, cannot be undone.’"AAPS points out that "it is the loss of life that ‘cannot be undone,’ while pills in a stockpile can be easily replenished by Defendants."AAPS asserts in its brief that FDA has tacitly conceded that:"the HCQ stockpile contains 60 million doses donated for the purpose of treating COVID-19";"experts, including Yale Professor Dr. Harvey Risch, observe that release of the HCQ Stockpile could save 50,000-100,000 American lives";"HCQ has been approved as safe by the FDA and used safely since 1955, and the CDC officially declares HCQ to be safe today";"foreign countries have kept their mortality rates far lower—sometimes 90% lower—than the United States’ rate, by encouraging use of HCQ"; and that"treating COVID-19, like treating the flu, requires taking medication as early as possible in the exposure to or progression of the disease."The FDA has argued that its decisions are not reviewable by a federal court. AAPS writes: "Under Defendants’ view they could dump the entire HCQ Stockpile into the Potomac River and there would be no legal accountability."AAPS asks the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals to enjoin FDA "to make available and distribute promptly, and for the benefit of the public holding valid prescriptions, the HCQ being stored in the SNS [Strategic National Stockpile]."AAPS has represented physicians of all specialties in all states since 1943. The AAPS motto is omnia pro aegroto, meaning everything for the patient.Contact: Jane M. Orient, M.D., (520) 323-3110, janeorientmd@gmail.com(4) Public pressure in 10 US states forces governors and pharmaceutical boards to lift restrictions on HCQhttps://yated.com/states-bow-to-pressure-to-reverse-course-on-hcq/States Bow to Pressure to Reverse Course on HCQBy Debbie MaimonSep 9, 2020As Covid-19 continues to burn its way across previously unscathed regions in the country, public pressure in ten states has forced governors and pharmaceutical boards to lift or ease restrictions on HCQ to fight the disease.Of the 44 states that had strict regulations in place since March, New York, Idaho, Kentucky, Minnesota, Mississippi, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, South Dakota and Texas have all seen significant changes and even complete reversals in HCQ policy in recent weeks and months.In some states where HCQ policies were rescinded, months of lobbying by legislators and public health activists paved the way behind the scenes.   In New York, for example, Gov. Andrew Cuomo suddenly announced on May 21, on Sean Hannity’s radio show, that there are now no restrictions in New York on HCQ, except for a 14-day limit on a prescription.This was a drastic shift from previous limitations on the drug—among the most restrictive in the country. Although the announcement appeared spontaneous, it came about amid sustained criticism of Cuomo’s handling of the pandemic, although the press muted a great deal of it. [...](5) The virus is inside the cell, the Zinc cannot get in, HCQ opens the door & lets the Zinc in; the Zinc kills the virushttps://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/280507The battle for the reputation of Hydroxychloroquine (NHQ).Controversy rages around this drug since Trump spoke about it after a series of positive reports from various global locations. Op-edBarry Shaw , 19/05/20 18:00[...] Dr. Vladimir Zelenko from New York announced that over 400 of his high-risk patients with COVID-19 have recovered.All were treated with his 3-drug regimen of hydroxychloroquine, azinthromycin, and zinc. The doctor said two patients died, but the other 403 recuperated completely from COVID-19, the disease many in the US call the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus."And by the way, it’s not magic, I mean there’s a reason behind it," said Zelenko. "The virus is inside the cell, the zinc cannot get inside the cell for biochemical reasons, so the hydroxychloroquine opens the door and lets the zinc in. That’s all it does, in this context. Meanwhile, the antibiotic, azithromycin, protects the patient from secondary infections."As one GP stated, "They also find a much higher benefit if you take those medications as soon as symptoms are present. The higher deaths are skewed because they are talking about intubated patients who pretty much had nothing left to lose."(6) Zinc is key to HCQ; If people cannot take HCQ, Quercetin is a second option to move Zinc into cellshttps://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2020/09/21/zinc-is-key-to-hcq-protocol.aspxZinc Is Key to HCQ ProtocolAnalysis by Dr. Joseph Mercola
Fact CheckedSeptember 21, 2020Physicians are reporting positive results using a combination of hydroxychloroquine, azithromycin and zincSome studies with negative results have had problems, including one in which suspect data caused the study to be retracted and another in which people were knowingly given lethal doses of the medication Hydroxychloroquine acts as a zinc ionophore, helping zinc pass the plasma membrane into the cell where it stops the replication of the virusQuercetin and epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG) work similarly to enhance the cellular uptake of zinc [...]As more physicians spoke about the evidence from their own practice using hydroxychloroquine in combination with zinc and azithromycin, state medical licensing boards and congressional representatives began issuing threats.21Dr. Vladimir Zelenko is another physician who has been vocal about this, and who published the positive effects he's been getting using a protocol with hydroxychloroquine, azithromycin and zinc sulfate.Del Bigtree from The Highwire quotes Raoult from a previous interview as saying failure to prescribe hydroxychloroquine to a COVID-19 patient "should be grounds for malpractice." During an interview with Bigtree July 3, 2020, Zelenko said, "People are not dying from COVID-19. They are dying from politics. It's called death by politics."In answer to the question of how history will look at the story of the pandemic in relationship to HCQ, Zelenko answered:"In my personal opinion, anyone who got in the way of access to care, who got in the way of access to patients having medication, committed crimes against humanity and are guilty of mass murder."During the interview Bigtree pointed out that the large doses of hydroxychloroquine being used in the Oxford Recovery Trial and the WHO Solidarity Trials were called "potentially fatal doses" by Dr. Meryl Nass. Nass added:"Excessive, dangerous HCQ dosing continues to be used in WHO's Solidarity trials. These trials are not, in fact, testing the benefits of HCQ on Covid-19, but rather are testing whether patients survive toxic, non-therapeutic doses.The high dose regimen being used in these trials has no medical justification. The trial design, with its limited collection of safety data, makes it difficult or impossible to identify toxic drug effects, compared to a standard drug trial. This is completely unethical. Excessive dosing makes it impossible to assess therapeutic benefit, if any, of HCQ."When asked if the 2400 mg of hydroxychloroquine used in the Recovery trial was lethal, Zelenko responded, "Not if you’re treating a very fat elephant."Quercetin and EGCG Are Effective Zinc IonophoresZelenko also shared that if people cannot get HCQ to move zinc into the cells, then quercetin is a second option.26 He is using it as "Plan B" for patients who have a contraindication for hydroxychloroquine or otherwise cannot take it.In the Zelenko protocol, hydroxychloroquine functions as a zinc ionophore, moving zinc into the cells where it halts the replication of the virus. This allows him to prescribe lower doses since zinc is the key component of the treatment. [...](7) Uttar Pradesh (India) uses Ivermectin for prevention and treatment of Covid-19The point being that there are various options which work. Nobody should be denied one. Zinc is used with Ivermection (as with HCQ) - Peter M.https://indianexpress.com/article/india/up-new-protocol-ivermectin-to-replace-hcq-in-treatment-of-covid-patients-6545236/UP: New Protocol Ivermectin to replace HCQ in treatment of Covid patientsSources in the government said that the decision to replace Hydroxychloroquine (HCQ) with Ivermectin was taken after encouraging results in Agra, where it was used on an experimental basis.Written by Maulshree Seth | Lucknow | August 8, 2020 6:15:18 amFor healthcare workers, it has been suggested to give Ivermectin dose on first, seventh and 30th day and then once a month. (Representational)The Uttar Pradesh government has decided to replace Hydroxychloroquine with Ivermectin for prevention and treatment of Covid-19.An order specifying the dosage and use of Ivermectin for both prevention as well as treatment has been issued by Additional Chief Secretary (Health & Medicine) Amit Mohan Prasad to all the chief medical officers in the state.Sources in the government said that the decision to replace Hydroxychloroquine (HCQ) with Ivermectin was taken after encouraging results in Agra, where it was used on an experimental basis.Sources said that the medicine proved effective in not only in the treatment of Covid-19 patients but also in preventing large scale infection among frontline health workers engaged in the treatment and handling of Covid-19 patients."There were a lot of issues with HCQ. Therefore, we have now been instructed to instead use Ivermectin as per the prescribed doses. We will start distribution of the medicine among frontline health workers and also during contact tracing from Saturday onwards," said Lucknow Chief Medical Officer Dr RP Singh.The decision and the dosage protocol of the drug were finalised at a meeting of medical experts chaired by Director General Medical and Health on August 4.For Covid patients, Ivermectin along with Doxycyclin has been prescribed.For healthcare workers, it has been suggested to give Ivermectin dose on first, seventh and 30th day and then once a month.However, as a caution, Ivermectin has not been advised for pregnant women or children below two years, just like Doxycyclin. Ivermectin is a broad-spectrum drug with potentials effects to treat a range of diseases, with its antimicrobial, antiviral, and anti-cancer properties, according to Nature. In its June 12 article, the science journal wrote that 5 µM of Ivermectin brought about 5000-fold reduction in viral RNA of SARS-CoV-2 or COVID-19 virus and the drug effectively kills almost all viral particles within 48 hours.(8) Israel's 2nd wave exacerbated by ban on HCQ; it was allowed during 1st wave https://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/287773Israel’s Covid mysteryHCQ was banned for Covid patients by the WHO on the basis of late stage trials. But doctors claim it worked in early stage usage.Barry Shaw 23/09/20 10:27Israel congratulated itself on coming through the Wuhan virus pandemic with flying colors. By the end of June, with only 300 plus deaths, we were king of the world. We were allowed to go about our normal daily lives. And then we were hit again. Big time. The death rate rocketed to over 1200.Why? What did we do differently?They said we were partying, getting married, gathering to pray, going to the beach. But we were doing all that before. So why the difference?We were never given the answer. Instead, they decided to appoint a health Czar, called him the Projector, gave him the keys to the castle, including budget, ministries, laboratories, hospitals, the health clinics, even the army, to flatten the second curve. The politicians promised to stay in the background.First, The Projector turned the country into traffic light zones. Those with the highest infection rate were zoned red and required to be quarantined. Made sense, until it was discovered that the vast majority of the red zones, fully 80%, were either Arab or Orthodox towns, and that caused resistance - never mind the high morbidity in those sectors.These places, The Projector said, must be placed in immediate lockdown. Then all hell let loose. Politics reared its inevitable head. Knesset meetings became riots. Factions which the Prime Minister depended for his support, and those that opposed him, began banging on his door. He could not win so he did what any politician would do. He threw The Projector’s plan out the window and decreed a national lockdown of three weeks coinciding with the Jewish High Holidays encompassing Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur and Sukkot.It began on the Friday afternoon before the traditional New Year’s eve to prevent mass family gatherings. But innovative defiant Israelis moved Rosh Hashanah festivities a day earlier and held their family gatherings on Thursday night instead of Friday. Brilliant.Thousands of Jews rushed to test centers before heading to Ben Gurion Airport and flying from red Israel to green pastures rather than remain in lockdown for weeks. Some booked indefinite one way tickets.Lots of TV chatter. Lots of ink splashed in pages of news media.Silence about the biggest mystery of all.Why are more people becoming seriously ill and dying than before?Why do we now have over 1,300 deaths when, in the peak of the first curve, our mortality rate was just over 300? Why the over 400% difference?It isn’t due to greater testing because people got sick, even without testing, in the first wave.Officials and pundits talk endlessly about testing, social distancing, lockdown, but little else. They are worried about hospitals and laboratories becoming overloaded with seriously infected patients.But no one is talking about how to stop early stage sufferers from deteriorating into hospitalization and worse.Are our local doctors and clinics being allowed to do everything possible to stop early stage patients from becoming hospitalized and dying?The answer is no. They are not. In fact, these first-line physicians, who have intimate professional contact with their patients, are being prevented from what might lead to treating them successfully.Were Israeli doctors prescribing something in the first wave that prevented massive mortality figures they are not prescribing now?The answer is yes.Local doctors and clinics are being prevented from prescribing a drug that worked before, but is banned now. The drug that dare not speak its name is hydroxychloroquine. Medical experts are forbidden on social media to mention its name. Some have been fired from their professional for daring to suggest that this drug, in combination with others, has saved countless lives.Now that ban has been placed on Israeli local physicians, and more people are dying.HCQ is a drug that received global official status use for a number of illnesses and diseases. It has a remarkable sixty-year safety record. But overnight, it became the devil’s potion.Many hundreds of doctors and thousands of patients who swear to its efficacy when used on early stage sufferers in the right dose and in combination with other medications such as zinc and azithromycin, have been pilloried and banned from expressing their data and from sharing their experiences.Professional physicians, in intimate contact with their private patients, are treated like heretics.The authorities say HCQ failed late stage clinical trials. They claim it left a few patients with heart irregularities, a claim refuted by many experts, including Dr. Harvey Risch, Professor of Epidemiology at the Yale School of Medicine, who is highly critical about how badly the clinical trials were conducted.After studying the clinical trials, he concluded, among the things, that they applied the drug incorrectly, even in dangerously high dosages, often not in combination with other drugs, to patients who had little chance of surviving with any drug.Professor Risch is an ardent advocate for the application of HCQ in combination with other medications to early stage patients, as is Dr. Vladimir Zelenko, an Orthodox American physician, who came up with the Zelenko Protocol which details, for local doctors and clinics dealing with early stage Covid patients, how to prescribe and monitor patients starting in the first five days of contracting the coronavirus.Professor Risch records and analyses the successes and failures of treating early stage Covid patients and is convinced in his judgment that HCQ, in combination with other drugs, is a safe and efficient method of preventing the debilitating effect of the coronavirus.This early stage treatment was pioneered successfully in France by virologist Didier Raoult, who successfully treated hundreds of Covid patients, before he was pilloried as being a quack by Big Pharma.Hydroxychloroquine was banned for Covid patients by the World Health Organization on the basis of these failed late stage trials. But the WHO recommends paracetamol, a drug that has not undergone clinical trials for Covid patients, and is known to have serious side effects. This is not only hypocritical, but highly suspect. And the WHO itself is suspect - as Donald Trump said in his UN speech.Which begs the question. Why the difference?This troubling discrepancy was brought home to me when I interviewed Dr. Rob Elens, a local physician with a busy clinic in the south of Holland.Dr. Elens had an initial twenty-five patients who came down with Covid. They were prescribed with the Dutch health authorities recommendation, namely paracetamol and isolation.The condition of all twenty-five worsened. All were hospitalized. Twelve of his patients died.Dr. Elens, a compassionate doctor, was gravely concerned that something better could have saved his patients’ lives. So he did what any self-respecting doctor would do. He went in search of the science and came across the Zelenko Protocol, a tried and tested derivative of several doctors’ experiences in helping their early stage patients get over Covid.So, when his next infected patient came along he offered him the choice of the official track or the drug combination of zinc, HCQ and azithromycin. Dr. Elens monitored the patient hourly and was pleased to discover that his patient responded well to the treatment and recovered completely within three days.The doctor repeated the same medication in the required doses with his next nine early stage patients. All recovered quickly. But when he reported his successful cases to the Dutch medical authorities he received a warning to desist.In my video "Covid, and the drug that dare not speak its name," the now defiant Dr. Elens responded by saying of his patients, "Better illegally alive, than legally dead."A June comparative study, carried out into Covid-19 patients by the Saudi national fever clinics, concluded that early intervention of a HCQ-based therapy in mild to moderate COVID-19 patients was associated with lower odds of hospitalization, ICU admission and/or death.And why, if it is so important to prevent our hospital system from being overwhelmed, are we not having a public conversation on the prevention of the use of a drug that dare not speak its name, but about which so many physicians and renowned specialists swear to its efficacy?This is a legitimate questions that demands answers at such a critical time.Barry Shaw, Senior Associate, Israel Institute for Strategic Studies. ==A slightly different version: Israel’s Covid Silence MysterySEP 21, 2020, 10:14 PMhttps://blogs.timesofisrael.com/israels-covid-silence-mystery/(9) Ronni Gamzu, Israel's coronavirus Projector, wanted to bar US yeshiva students from entryhttps://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/284565/Ronni Gamzu: Don't allow 16,000 US yeshiva students into Israel Prof. Ronni Gamzu, gov't coronavirus project manager, speaks out against decision to allow US yeshiva students into Israel.Arutz Sheva Staff , 01/08/20 23:38Professor Ronni Gamzu, the government's coronavirus project manager, criticized the decision to allow 16,000 US yeshiva students into Israel ahead of the holiday season. [...](10) Ultra-Orthodox Jews force Netanyahu to override Ronni Gamzuhttps://www.nytimes.com/2020/09/08/world/middleeast/israel-coronavirus-ronni-gamzu-netanyahu.htmlIsrael’s Virus Czar Was Making Headway. Then He Tangled With a Key Netanyahu Ally.As he moved to slow the pandemic, Dr. Ronni Gamzu kept butting heads with ultra-Orthodox leaders. Then Israel’s top virus fighter was suddenly undercut.By David M. Halbfinger and Isabel KershnerPublished Sept. 8, 2020 Updated Sept. 18, 2020JERUSALEM — For a fleeting three days, it looked as if Israel had successfully rebooted its faulty fight against the coronavirus.Then politics intervened.In late July, a veteran Tel Aviv hospital administrator, Dr. Ronni Gamzu, was anointed the country’s virus Czar and swept in with self-assurance. Acknowledging previous government mistakes, he enlisted the military to take responsibility for contact tracing and pleaded with Israelis to take the threat seriously and wear their masks.He also vowed to restore the public’s trust, demanding accountability from municipal officials while replacing the central government’s ceaselessly zigzagging dictates with simple instructions that anyone, it seemed, should be able to understand and embrace.Last Thursday, Dr. Gamzu won cabinet approval for a traffic light-themed plan to impose strict lockdowns on "red" cities with the worst outbreaks, while easing restrictions in "green" ones where the virus was finding fewer victims. The goal was to avoid, or at least delay, another economically strangling nationwide lockdown.By Sunday, however, Dr. Gamzu was looking more like a victim himself.Ultra-Orthodox leaders who felt that their community was being stigmatized revolted against the traffic light plan. This time, however, they did not bother to attack Dr. Gamzu, instead directing their ire at his most important backer, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.And Mr. Netanyahu, under fierce public pressure from one of his most vital constituencies, caved in on the targeted lockdown plan.Forget about the harshest new restrictions in red cities, he announced Sunday night. Instead, he and Dr. Gamzu grasped at a watered-down nighttime curfew, something that Arab mayors had proposed to curtail big weddings but that even Dr. Gamzu later conceded would have little effect in ultra-Orthodox communities.Mr. Netanyahu and Dr. Gamzu took turns at a microphone on Monday to project unity. Mr. Netanyahu insisted that he had not knuckled under but merely done what the professionals had recommended. Dr. Gamzu insisted that even if his professional recommendations had been blocked, he was determined to soldier on.But the upshot for Israel is a bleak prospect: The pandemic has mushroomed, with Israel’s number of new cases near the worst in the world on a per-capita basis. Yet the odds of stopping its march seem slim as the Jewish High Holy Days approach.Ordinarily, the New Year, Yom Kippur and Sukkot are a festive and unifying time. Instead, there are fears that by Sept. 18, when the holidays begin, Israel will be either overrun by the pandemic or under a full lockdown. And the deeply polarized country appears to be warring with itself along religious, cultural and political lines that may sound familiar to many Americans.Secular Israeli Jews accuse the ultra-Orthodox and Arab citizens of spreading the virus in their overcrowded areas. The ultra-Orthodox point to the relative normalcy of life in Tel Aviv and complain that they are being singled out.Joined by their right-wing allies, they ask why, if crowds are so dangerous, liberal-leaning protesters are allowed to gather by the thousands to demand Mr. Netanyahu’s ouster. [...](11) How China & France discovered that HCQ beats Covid https://indianexpress.com/article/explained/coronavirus-vaccine-hydroxychloroquine-hcq-covid-19-treatment-6504276/Experts Explain: The case for using hydroxychloroquine (HCQ) to treat Covid-19Hydroxychloroquine is obviously not a panacea for severe cases of Covid-19. Given early, it helps reduce mortality by about half, compared to those not given the drug.Written by M S Seshadri,T. Jacob John | New Delhi | Updated: July 15, 2020 10:18:26 amHydroxychloroquine, pulled out of WHO Solidarity trial, has now shown fresh promise in a Detroit study. (Getty Images)The usefulness of hydroxychloroquine (HCQ) in Covid-19 has been controversial, without clarity or clear evidence one way or the other, until very recently. A study on more than 2,500 patients in six units under the Henry Ford Hospitals group in Detroit, Michigan, USA, peer-reviewed, accepted and ready for publication in the International Journal of Infectious Diseases, has found good evidence that HCQ reduces Covid-19 mortality significantly. It should be noted that conditions apply.HCQ has been widely used as a drug to treat malaria and to prevent malaria in travellers to malaria-endemic zones, for decades. Once its anti-inflammatory and immune suppressant properties were identified, it began to be used the world over in autoimmune diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis and systemic lupus erythematosus. In fact, in developed countries without malaria, it is widely but almost exclusively used by rheumatologists. The side-effect profile has been well characterised and protocols for monitoring side effects are taught in all medical colleges. The drug has withstood the test of time.When the chikungunya pandemic seeded epidemics in various states in India during 2002 through 2006, many patients in the post-chikungunya-fever phase developed persistent and disabling large joint pain and swelling, lasting months to years. HCQ came to their rescue and physicians have been using it with remarkable success, but with all due precautions.HCQ in Covid pandemicThe story of HCQ and Covid-19 began in Wuhan, China, where patients who were on HCQ, attending rheumatology clinics, seemed to be relatively protected from serious Covid-19 than those attending other clinics. Looking for possible treatment options, Chinese physicians stumbled on HCQ . So they began using HCQ empirically for treating Covid-19.French physicians, familiar with HCQ used against an endemic bacterial disease called Q fever, followed up with scientific studies for seeking objective evidence for HCQ use in Covid-19. There was laboratory evidence that HCQ acts against SARS coronavirus type 1 and, more recently, also against type 2 that causes Covid-19. The French reported that HCQ reduced both the viral load and duration of virus shedding in the upper respiratory tract of Covid-19 patients. That paved the way for global use of the drug for Covid-19, with believers and sceptics raising a cacophony of controversies. Adding fuel to the fire, indiscriminate use without due precautions, over-dosing, and prolonged usage resulted in many adverse side effects described in the books, even deaths. So the pendulum swung away from its use in many countries.In the US, rheumatologists were unhappy because of shortage of HCQ for the legitimate needs of their patients, on account of heavy demand for the drug to prevent and treat Covid-19 — based more on empiricism than evidence. India, the world’s largest producer of HCQ, exported huge supplies of the drug to the US and Brazil in April.There was a widespread clamour for controlled clinical trials. There was the Recovery trial in the UK and the Veterans Administration trial in the US, both on seriously ill Covid-19 patients. HCQ did not reduce mortality and the pendulum swung against HCQ use in Covid-19. The World Health Organization (WHO) had the Solidarity trial with HCQ in one arm. A scientific paper on a large number of patients, published in The Lancet, reported an unacceptable frequency of serious HCQ side-effects, based on which WHO hastily withdrew it from the study. Within days, it became evident that the Lancet article was based on doubtful data and the journal withdrew the article with alacrity. Immediately WHO made a volte face and re-introduced HCQ in the Solidarity trial, only to withdraw it soon after the UK Recovery trial showed lack of benefits with the drug.The Detroit study on Covid-19 patients aged 18 to 76, the majority with co-morbidities, was protocol-driven. In one group a short course of HCQ was started early, preferably on the first or latest second day of hospitalisation. In order to avoid serious side effects, the drug regimen was short – 400 mg twice on day one, followed by 200 mg twice daily for four more days. Corticosteroids were used as adjunct therapy in a proportion of patients in both groups. The in-hospital mortality for Covid-19 was 26.4 per cent in those not given HCQ, reduced to 13.5 per cent in the HCQ-treated group.The Detroit study has swung the pendulum all the way back, favourable to HCQ use in Covid-19. If the scientific evidence from France was for reduction of viral load in the upper respiratory tract, was it not likely that it reflected a reduction of viral load in all other infected body tissues also? When should the viral load be reduced – late in the course of disease or early? Does it not make sense to use the drug early and not late?The road aheadHCQ is obviously not a panacea for severe cases of Covid-19. Given early, it helps reduce mortality by about half, compared to those not given HCQ. In India the drug is widely available and not expensive. A number of Indian states have already incorporated a short course of HCQ in their Covid-19 treatment protocol, and states that have not done so will do well to implement this quickly.Two other therapies for mortality reduction are a short course of dexamethasone and convalescent plasma. Indian physicians have a golden opportunity to use the three modalities in sequence – dexamethasone in those who do not improve with early use of HCQ and convalescent plasma for those who do not improve with dexamethasone <https://indianexpress.com/article/coronavirus/coronavirus-covid-19-drug-dexamethasone-price-availability-all-you-need-to-know-6462076/>. The outcome of this treatment sequence will inform the medical community how to save many lives.Dr Seshadri is retired Professor of medical endocrinology, Christian Medical College, Vellore and currently Director, Thirumalai Mission Hospital Ranipet. Dr John is retired Professor of Clinical Virology, CMC, Vellore and Past President of Indian Academy of Pediatrics.