I won't comment on panic buying but the most recent data supports the use of a hydroxychloroquine/antibiotic regimen when symptoms of covid19 first flare up. Studies have shown that those that do this are less likely to be hospitalized.
Of course this drug should only be used while under the care and direction of a physician.
And for the record Trump's statements were not "ridiculous" they actually made sense. Off label use of approved drugs offer many benefits - they are generally cheaper then new drugs and they have much more safety data. Back in the early 90's I worked on a project to demonstrate that the off label use of an existing drug was effective in treating a nasty symptom in AIDS patients. It became the standard of care.
I don't think he ever mentioned the use of off label drugs, just his "miracle," despite the fact that its effectiveness had not proven to be true. I'm sorry, his handling of the misinformation and the "off the cuff" solutions has not helped, but done a disservice to the country.
"Goetz said that in mid-March, orders took a small but eyebrow-raising increase. The Fox News cable channel reported March 16 on a French study of hydroxychloroquine as a treatment for COVID-19, the disease resulting from infection from the new coronavirus.
Then on March 20, President Donald Trump mentioned the drug for the first time. For weeks after, amplified with frequent reporting from Fox News, the president advocated for the drug’s use for COVID-19 with the pitch, “What have you got to lose?”
In April, the FDA
recommended against prescribing hydroxychloroquine because of side effects including heart failure and loss of vision. That action, Goetz said, stopped the tide of new orders to HealthWarehouse.
But every few days, Goetz gets a few more new orders from people who just heard about the drug. "They think it’s the hot new information,” and he tells them it's not."