Urges public to take hydroxychloroquine for COVID-19, asking 'what do you have to lose?'

At an April 5, 2020 coronavirus task force briefing, Trump repeatedly urged people to consider taking hydroxychloroquine, an antimalarial drug then unproven as a COVID-19 treatment, telling reporters 'What do you have to lose?' He disclosed that the federal government had purchased and stockpiled 29 million pills of the drug. Dr. Anthony Fauci, appearing alongside him, said the evidence for the drug's effectiveness was 'at best suggestive.' Physicians and public-health researchers said the framing understated documented cardiac and other risks associated with the drug and could encourage unsupervised self-medication.

“I just think it's something — you know the expression, I've used it for certain reasons: 'What do you have to lose?' What do you have to lose?” Quote verified against source