Unvaccinated Texas GOP gubernatorial candidate Allen West is ill with COVID-19 and medicating with unproven drugs
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- Texas GOP candidate for governor Allen West and his wife tested positive for COVID-19.
- West said he might be hospitalized after his oxygen levels dropped and x-rays showed pneumonia.
- West, who is unvaccinated, said he's taken unproven drugs hydroxychloroquine and ivermectin.
Texas GOP gubernatorial candidate Allen West announced that he was sick with COVID-19 on Saturday.
West, a former US representative for Florida and retired Army lieutenant colonel, said he and his wife, Angela, both tested positive.
"I want to thank all of you for your prayers," West said in a post on his Facebook page.
He added that there was concern over his oxygen saturation levels, "which are at 89 and they should be at 95." He said x-rays show pneumonia but said it's not "serious."
"I am probably going to be admitted to the hospital," West said.
While his wife was vaccinated, West said he had not been.
"LTC West has publicly stated he supports individual choice and this is reflected in his own family," another announcement on his Facebook said.
The announcement said West had already taken "Hydroxychloroquine and Ivermectin protocols." There is no "protocol" for the use of these drugs, neither of which have been approved for the treatment of COVID-19 by the Food and Drug Administration.
In June 2020, the FDA revoked the emergency use authorization for hydroxychloroquine in the treatment of COVID-19 after studies found it was "unlikely to be effective in treating COVID-19 for the authorized uses."
Earlier this summer, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention issued a health advisory against the use of Ivermectin after calls to poison control centers rose from people self-medicating with the horse deworming drug. Insider's Andrea Michaelson reported that the drug has serious side effects and there hasn't been any strong or reliable evidence that it works at treating COVID-19.
The announcement also said West and his wife have been given monoclonal antibody infusion therapy and are being observed. The FDA has approved monoclonal antibody therapies for treating COVID-19. For the best outcome, the drug should be administered during the early stages of symptoms.
West spoke to a "packed house" two days before announcing he had COVID-19 at the Mission Generation Annual Gala Lakewood Yacht Club in Seabrook, Texas.
-Allen West (@AllenWest) October 8, 2021
West's campaign did not respond to Insider's email request for comment at the time of publication.
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