A Los Angeles area and asked to only be identified by her first name, Dale, received an online message from her health care provider stating it will no longer refill her vital hydroxychloroquine prescriptions because that drug is being used to treat the “critically ill with COVID-19,” the disease caused by the novel coronavirus. The letter thanked her for her “sacrifice.”
“I am already immunocompromised, and not taking this medication with likely put me into a lupus flare, making serious complications from COVID more likely.
The fact that they thanked me for my ‘sacrifice’ is disturbing. I never agreed to sacrifice my health and possibly my life and cannot believe that I am being forced to do so.”
In a statement provided to BuzzFeed News, Kaiser Permanente confirmed that it was no longer filling routine prescriptions for chloroquine.
Lupus Foundation of America:
Anna Valdez, Ph.D., RN, a medical professional also diagnosed with lupus, said she couldn’t refill her prescription for hydroxychloroquine either due to shortages amid the coronavirus outbreak. It is unclear who her health care provider is.
Nancy Gin, regional medical director of Quality and Clinical Analysis at Kaiser Permanente, Southern California, said the company is working to ensure both COVID-19 patients and those diagnosed with severe, acute lupus have access to the drug amid shortages.
“As we face the real possibility of running out of the drug for everybody if we don’t take steps to mitigate the shortage, Kaiser Permanente, like other health care organizations across the country, has had to take steps to control the outflow of the medication to ensure access to severely sick patients, including both COVID-19 and those with acute lupus,” she said.
“Extensive experience and research show that hydroxychloroquine builds up in the body and continues to work for an average of 40 days even after the last dose is taken,” she continued. “By then, we expect the drug manufacturers to have ramped up production to meet the increased demand. Until then, we are no longer refilling routine prescriptions to ensure we have adequate supply to care for our sickest patients.”
