Dr. Fauci Sides with CNN’s John Berman Over Pro-Hydroxychloroquine Yale Doc: Nearly Every ‘Competent’ Scientist Agrees

White House infectious disease honcho Dr. Anthony Fauci firmly rejected Yale epidemiologist Dr. Harvey Risch’s criticisms of randomized placebo-controlled studies of hydroxychloroquine, siding with CNN’s John Berman on his throwdown with Risch earlier this week.

Berman went 11 rounds with Dr. Risch on Monday over the drug that President Donald Trump has been promoting for months, but which has not been proven effective and may be harmful in some cases. Risch argued, at length, against Fauci’s description of randomized placebo-controlled trials as the scientific “gold standard.”

On Thursday morning’s edition of New Day, Berman asked Dr. Fauci to respond, and Fauci was unequivocal, if respectful, in his disagreement with Risch.

“In terms of science and studies, this does raise another question, and I don’t want to relitigate hydroxychloroquine, because the science hasn’t changed on it in the last week or the last day.,” Berman said. “However we did have Dr Harvey wish from Yale on Monday, and he suggested what you have been saying, that random controlled trials, placebo-controlled trials, you say they’re the gold standards. He says that’s not so. We shouldn’t be so reliant on them when determining the efficacy of hydroxychloroquine.”

“Why do you feel so strongly about those trials?” Berman asked.

“Well, because it is the gold standard,” Fauci said, and explained “You have to compare your intervention with something. Because the medical literature and experience is full of situations of anecdotal retrospective cohort studies that have proven to be wrong.”

“I might add, agreeing with me is virtually every scientist who is competent in clinical trials, that will say that the randomized place placebo-controlled trial is in fact the gold standard,” Fauci added coolly. “So I would have to respectfully totally disagree with him.”

Watch the clip above via CNN.