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President Donald Trump emphatically defended himself Tuesday against criticism from medical experts that his announced use of a malaria drug against the coronavirus could spark wide misuse by Americans of the unproven treatment with potentially fatal side effects. Trump’s revelation a day earlier that he was taking hydroxychloroquine caught many in his administration by surprise and set off an urgent effort by officials to justify his action. But their attempt to address the concerns of health professionals was undercut by the president himself. (Miller, Marchione and Lemire, 5/20)

“People are going to have to make up their own mind,” Trump said about hydroxychloroquine during a visit to the U.S. Capitol. “I think it gives you an additional level of safety.” The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has warned about potential serious side effects with the use of the drug in COVID-19 patients. Weeks ago, Trump had promoted the drug as a potential treatment based on a positive report about its use against the virus, but subsequent studies found that it was not helpful. (Holland and Mason, 5/19)

"This is an individual decision to make," he added. "But it’s had a great reputation and if it was somebody else other than me people would say, 'Gee isn’t that smart.'" (Samuels, 5/19)

Quickly, the administration assumed its typical posture for unexpected presidential proclamations — in this case, that the president had been using the anti-malaria drug hydroxychloroquine. Officials defended the president’s decision while artfully addressing whether it is wise for the country's leader take an unproven coronavirus treatment that some research has shown could have serious side effects. Other aides scrambled to see if they could handle a potential surge in public requests for the drug. And there was discussion among health officials about whether the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention should issue additional guidance on using the approved drug, updating an existing government warning against taking the drug for coronavirus outside of a hospital setting or a clinical trial, according to a Republican close to the White House. (McGraw and Cook, 5/19)

The stress of the coronavirus pandemic is testing even the closest relationships. President Trump and Fox News are no exception. In a dust-up between the top-rated cable news channel and its most prominent loyal viewer, Mr. Trump unleashed a barrage against the Fox News anchor Neil Cavuto, who gave a withering on-air assessment of the president’s announcement that he was ingesting hydroxychloroquine, a malaria drug that can pose dangers for coronavirus patients. (Grynbaum, 5/19)

President Trump’s enthusiastic embrace of a malaria drug that he now says he takes daily — and the resulting uproar in the news media — appears to be interfering with legitimate scientific research into whether the medicine might work to prevent coronavirus infection or treat the disease in its early stages. The drug, hydroxychloroquine, which is also widely used to treat lupus and other autoimmune diseases, has shown no real benefit for hospitalized coronavirus patients, and may have contributed to some deaths, recent studies show. (Stolberg, 5/19)

Vice President Mike Pence said Tuesday he's not taking hydroxychloroquine, an unproven treatment for COVID-19 that President Donald Trump has vigorously promoted and claims to be taking himself. "My physician hasn’t recommended that but I wouldn’t hesitate to take the counsel of my doctor," Pence told Fox News in an interview from NASA headquarters in Washington, D.C. "I would never begrudge any American taking the advice of their physician." (Gregorian, 5/19)

Lupus patient Stacie Beland watched closely Monday night as President Trump announced that he was taking hydroxychloroquine as a preventive treatment for COVID-19. There are no studies showing that the drug is effective in treating or preventing the coronavirus, but 1.5 million lupus patients depend on hydroxychloroquine, which is also known by its brand name, Plaquenil. And since March, the drug has been difficult to come by. (Raphelson and Young, 5/19)