Tech Crunch made this conclusion by citing a small case Chinese study.
Yet, we have another Chinese study that showed a DIFFERENT RESULT.
See here:
https://www.jstage.jst.go.jp/article/bst/14/1/14_2020.01047/_pdf/-char/en
Breakthrough: Chloroquine phosphate has shown apparent
efficacy in treatment of COVID-19 associated pneumonia in
clinical studies
Which one to believe?
I will say, since day one of his Administration, President Trump has been consistent on this point: If a drug has been deemed safe for human consumption under the care of a doctor, that doctor should be allowed to administer it to people without the FDA having to approve it for that use.
He has been touting the “right-to-try” since his 2018 State of The Union address and even before, and this should be even less controversial.
If a drug has been deemed safe for human consumption, the FDA should not be an obstacle to use in “off label” situations under a doctor’s care, although I am sure there are likely exceptions to this.
How the FDA got into efficacy versus safety over the years is likely a long story...but it has become a roadblock to finding uses for approved drugs.