NEW YORK TIMES: “If hydroxychloroquine becomes an accepted treatment, several pharmaceutical companies stand to profit, including shareholders and senior executives with connections to the president.”

NYT: “…the president’s assertiveness in pressing the case over the advice of advisers like Dr. Anthony S. Fauci…has driven a wedge inside his coronavirus task force and has raised questions about his motives.”

Washington, DC – Today, Patients Over Pharma released the following statement after news broke that President Trump and a number of his top allies and backers have personal financial stakes in pharmaceutical companies that stand to gain from sales of the unproven coronavirus treatment hydroxychloroquine. According to the New York Times, President Trump has a personal financial stake in Sanofi, which produces the brand-name version of hydroxychloroquine, and many his top backers and fellow members of the Administration are also invested in companies that stand to benefit from hydroxychloroquine’s usage.

“It should be shocking to hear that the President of the United States and his top allies have personal financial interests in the unproven and controversial coronavirus treatment being hawked daily from the White House briefing room, but sadly this is par for the course in this Administration,” said Patients Over Pharma spokesman Eli Zupnick

“People should be able to trust that their government is giving medical advice and making public health decisions based on the best science and medicine, not whatever will pay off for President Trump or his allies.”

Last week, following a spate of reports of White House pressure influencing FDA public health decisions, Patients Over Pharma called for FDA Commissioner Stephen Hahn to resist mounting inappropriate pressure and commit to putting patients and public health first.

Earlier this year, Patients Over Pharma released an updated and expanded version of their BigPharmasBestFriends.org website, which reveals the latest on Trump Administration officials who made millions of dollars from the pharmaceutical industry, the number of pharmaceutical companies and lobbying groups represented in the Trump administration, the revolving door between the Trump Administration and the pharmaceutical industry, and more.

Key excerpts from New York Times coverage:

“If hydroxychloroquine becomes an accepted treatment, several pharmaceutical companies stand to profit, including shareholders and senior executives with connections to the president. Mr. Trump himself has a small personal financial interest in Sanofi, the French drugmaker that makes Plaquenil, the brand-name version of hydroxychloroquine.”

“….Some associates of Mr. Trump’s have financial interests in the issue. Sanofi’s largest shareholders include Fisher Asset Management, the investment company run by Ken Fisher, a major donor to Republicans, including Mr. Trump. A spokesman for Mr. Fisher declined to comment.

“Another investor in both Sanofi and Mylan, another pharmaceutical firm, is Invesco, the fund previously run by Wilbur Ross, the commerce secretary. Mr. Ross said in a statement Monday that he “was not aware that Invesco has any investments in companies producing” the drug, “nor do I have any involvement in the decision to explore this as a treatment.”

“As of last year, Mr. Trump reported that his three family trusts each had investments in a Dodge & Cox mutual fund, whose largest holding was in Sanofi.

“Several generic drugmakers are gearing up to produce hydroxychloroquine pills, including Amneal Pharmaceuticals, whose co-founder Chirag Patel is a member of Trump National Golf Course Bedminster in New Jersey and has golfed with Mr. Trump at least twice since he became president, according to a person who saw them.

“Mr. Patel, whose company is based in Bridgewater, N.J., did not respond to a request for comment. Amneal announced last month that it would increase production of the drug and donate millions of pills to New York and other states. Other generic drugmakers are ramping up production, including Mylan and Teva Pharmaceutical Industries.

“Roberto Mignone, a Teva board member, reached out to the team of Jared Kushner, the president’s son-in-law and senior adviser, through Nitin Saigal, who used to work for Mr. Mignone and is a friend of Mr. Kushner’s, according to people informed about the discussions.”

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