Queensland businessman has pledged to fund 1m doses, despite warnings it can lead to heart attacks, eye damage and coma
Prominent advertisements paid for by former federal politician Clive Palmer which promote a malaria drug as a potential “cure” for Covid-19 are “ethically immoral” according to Prof Peter Collignon, a former World Health Organization advisor who worked on Australia’s response to the Sars virus.
The two-page ad in the
Australian states the drug, hydroxychloroquine, when combined with another medication could “wipe out the virus in test tubes” and Australia’s drugs regulator, the Therapeutic Goods Administration [TGA], is now investigating whether the ad breaches drugs advertising rules. The ad says Palmer – who has headed several failed businesses and has been hit with criminal charges following an investigation by the corporate regulator – had agreed to personally fund the acquisition or manufacture of 1m doses “to ensure all Australians would have access to the drug as soon as possible”.