CLAIM: President Donald Trump “removed regulatory barriers” for coronavirus patients.
VERDICT: True.
According to Dr. G.E. Ghali, an oral and maxillofacial surgeon who spoke at the Republican National Convention (RNC) on Monday, Trump “removed regulatory barriers” for coronavirus patients in three ways.
“On February 26, two phase three clinical trials studying Remdesivir were initiated. Just two months later, the FDA approved Remdesivir for emergency use to treat COVID-19. Normally this is a 3-5 year process!” Ghali said.
The second way in which the Trump administration made it easier for coronavirus patients to get treatments was through “access to COVID-19 Convalescent Plasma.”
“Within 24 hours of this approval, we were administering Convalescent Plasma and Remdesivir to a critically ill patient … a former Army Ranger and physician. Had it not been for the rapid deployment of these medicines, this patient, who is my colleague and friend, would have surely died,” Ghali continued.
Third, Ghali recounted his own experience contracting the coronavirus himself at the beginning of August.
“At the end of July, I developed a fever and a mild cough. I reached out to our testing team and received one of the Abbott Rapid Tests — yet another tool quickly approved by the Administration,” he said.
He received a positive result in 15 minutes and received his first Remdesivir treatments within four hours of testing positive. He also received an infusion of Convalescent Plasma.
Ghali praised Trump’s response to the coronavirus both as a physician and as a patient.
“As a physician, I’ve seen firsthand how these breakthroughs have saved countless lives. As a patient, I benefited from the expedited therapies made possible by the swift action of this Administration. Donald Trump truly moved mountains to save lives, and he deserves credit,” he said.