Speaking of chloroquine …. don't take fish tank disinfectant

Who needs social distancing to guard against coronavirus when you can chug fish tank disinfectant instead? It’s a strategy some Americans seem to be employing — because chloroquine phosphate, a formulation of the drugs Trump keeps pushing, is sold as a chemical used to prevent parasites in home aquariums. 

One eBay account reported 104 sales for chloroquine phosphate in a single 24-hour stretch this weekend, with prices reaching $519.99 for a 100-gram supply. Human doses are typically 250 or 500 milligrams — hundreds of times smaller. The sales spiked Saturday after Trump again touted hydroxychloroquine, a different formulation of the drug, and followed a week in which Trump repeatedly sparred with Fauci after pushing chloroquine formulations as a coronavirus drug.

The run on chloroquine has already sparked shortages for patients with conditions like rheumatoid arthritis and lupus who rely on the drug. In a statement, an FDA spokesman said the agency was aware that chloroquine was marketed to combat aquarium parasites, but should “never be used” by humans. He declined to reveal whether the agency had taken any enforcement action over the suspicious new proliferation of chloroquine phosphate merchants.