Despite the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, partisanship between Republicans, Democrats, and their auxiliaries has remained. A victim of this media war has been the drug hydroxychloroquine, alternatively blessed as a miracle cure and a dangerous toxin. What’s the truth about this drug that is dividing politicians and journalists?

Hydroxychloroquine, typically sold under the brand name Plaquenil, is a medication primarily used in the treatment and curing of malaria. Discovered in 1934 by the German scientist Hans Andersag, it entered clinical trials in the United States in 1947.

The drug was ignored for a decade because it was believed early on to be too toxic for humans. Even today, if taken in incorrect doses, negative symptoms persist including damage to the retina, vomiting, and overdose that could lead to death. Precautions are taken seriously when the drug is administered to children or pregnant women. But despite the possible side effects, the drug has proved a potent weapon in combatting malaria, along with rheumatoid arthritis and lupus, and can be purchased cheaply in the western world.

The drug suddenly took center stage after early testing trials overseas showed the possibility that it could be used to lessen the effects of the coronavirus. Although the results were inconclusive, once President Donald Trump became aware of them, he would quick to call for more research into hydroxychloroquine, believing it could hold the key for ending the pandemic. “We’ve got people dying in this country and all over the world now, not in a couple of years. They’re dying, as we speak there are people dying. I really think it’s a great thing to try, just based on what I know. Again, I’m not a doctor, and I say get a physician’s approval,” the president said at one of his press conferences.

Other Republicans have joined the president in calling for more testing and investment in the drug. Peter Navarro, the president’s trade advisor who has been put in charge of administering the Defense Production Act, is also in the president’s corner. Meanwhile, critics of the administration, including those in the media, have called Trump’s statements dangerous and misleading, claiming that he’s promoting an unsafe and untested drug. A case of an elderly couple in Arizona ingesting their fish tank cleaner because it contained hydroxychloroquine was widely covered.

Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, has attempted to take a middle ground. “I think we’ve got to be careful that we don’t make that majestic leap to assume that this is a knockout drug,” he said last week. “We still need to do the kinds of studies that definitively prove whether any intervention, not just this one, any intervention is truly safe and effective.”

In the past week, the National Institute of Health announced it would begin conducting a human clinical trial to research whether hydroxychloroquine was effective against the coronavirus. They were followed by South Dakota, whose governor announced this morning that using a supply of the drug provided by the administration, her state would begin a comprehensive clinical trial. “From Day One, I’ve said we’re going to let the science, facts and data drive our decision-making in South Dakota,” said Governor Kristi Noem.

There are currently no medications that are recommended to prevent or treat the development of the coronavirus.

Hunter DeRensis is the senior reporter for the National Interest. Follow him on Twitter @HunterDeRensis.