Veterans Affairs Secretary Robert Wilkie is firing back after a whistleblower complaint about the agency’s use of the controversial drug hydroxychloroquine led to heavy criticism.
“There are concerns that they are using this drug when the medical evidence says it doesn鈥檛 help and could hurt,鈥� said Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer in an interview with The Associated Press.
Responding to the condemnation of the VA, Wilkie told 草莓传媒, “This is a drug we use 42,000 times a day. The military and VA have been using it for 65 years. It is not unknown.鈥�
Furthermore, Wilkie said, 鈥淭his drug is 128th on the list of drugs most used by Americans. We know about it.鈥�
- Sign up for news alerts from 草莓传媒
- Northam: Northern Va. 鈥榥ot there yet鈥� on Phase I of COVID-19 recovery
- Trump faces virus at White House amid push to 鈥榬eopen鈥� US
- Convention center transformed into alternate care site as part of DC coronavirus response
- Maryland Del. Cox appears to promote Bill Gates coronavirus conspiracy theory
- Coronavirus test results in DC, Maryland and Virginia
- Coronavirus FAQ: What you need to know
Looking for more information? D.C., Maryland and Virginia are each releasing more data every day. Visit their official sites here:聽听触听听触听
According to the whistleblower, former Health and Human Services official Rick Bright, the Trump administration ignored his warning about using the drug.
“Their eagerness to push blindly forward without sufficient data to put this drug into the hands of Americans was alarming to me and my fellow scientists,” Bright said. He also told reporters recently that the government wanted to “flood” U.S. COVID-19 hot spots with the drug.
The Food and Drug Administration has questioned the effectiveness of hydroxychloroquine.
A group of researchers from universities in South Carolina and Virginia studied the use of hydroxychloroquine at VA facilities. They scrutinized medical records of 368 male veterans hospitalized with confirmed COVID-19 at VA medical centers, who died or were discharged by April 11.
In their study, the researchers said, 鈥渨e found no evidence that use of hydroxychloroquine, either with or without azithromycin, reduced the risk of mechanical ventilation in patients hospitalized with COVID-19.鈥�
Additionally, they said, 鈥淎n association of increased overall mortality was identified in patients treated with hydroxychloroquine alone. These findings highlight the importance of awaiting the results of ongoing prospective, randomized, controlled studies before widespread adoption of these drugs.鈥�
Wilkie responded sharply, essentially saying that the VA has done nothing untoward. 鈥淒uring the emergency, we have followed FDA guidelines to provide our patients and their families with this [drug] in the event that they feel that there really isn’t any other alternative,” he said.
鈥淭hose veterans,鈥� he added, 鈥渨ere, sadly, in the last stages of life. Their doctors and their families were consulted and we used this.”
Wilkie said the VA has 9.5 million veterans enrolled in its benefits and services program nationwide.
鈥淩ight now, we only have 2,100 active cases of veterans with the virus across the country. Sadly, 579 have passed away,鈥� he said.
It鈥檚 not clear how many of the 579 who have died had taken hydroxychloroquine.
Still, Wilkie said the VA is 鈥済rateful鈥� for the low number of deaths and 鈥渟urprised because we’ve got 14,000 beds in VA facilities across the country and we only have 150 veterans in our ICU beds, and 287 in our regular medical beds with the virus.鈥�
Asked about the safety of health care workers at VA locations, Wilkie said, 鈥淚f I could give every employee in the VA two or three changes of protective equipment a day, I would. But I’m not able to do that because the entire country is looking to our national stockpile to take protective equipment.鈥�
As for VA employees who don’t have contact with patients, he said, 鈥渨e haven’t given [them] changes of protective gear.鈥�
As Wilkie and his VA team wrestled with that situation, the American Federation of Government Employees filed a complaint with the Occupational Safety and Health Administration last month, accusing the VA of failing to protect its staff.
The VA also received a letter from U.S. senators in Massachusetts, Pennsylvania and Montana, 鈥渟aying that we weren’t conducting operations in the state veterans homes,鈥� according to Wilkie.
鈥淲e don’t have any statutory authority to control, manage or operate state veterans homes,” Wilkie said. “Those are the provinces of the state. The federal statutes are very clear about that.鈥�
Despite the challenges, Wilkie said, 鈥渨e have the lowest employee infection rate of any health care system in the free world. It sits under a half of 1%, and we’re very proud of that.鈥�
