UFC President Dana White made some strong accusations about the United States health care system’s response to Joe Rogan’s COVID-19 treatment advice.
Last week, 270 doctors, scientists, professors, and nurses among others penned an open letter to Spotify calling on the streaming platform to create a misinformation policy. The letter was written as a reaction to a recent episode of The Joe Rogan Experience that had Dr. Robert Malone on as a guest.
In the letter, the coalition accused Malone of spreading COVID-19 conspiracy theories. They also criticized Rogan for being a consistently negative influence on the public, particularly his younger audience members.
At the UFC Vegas 46 post-fight press conference, White was asked about the letter and all the criticisms aimed at Rogan. Being that White has credited Rogan’s advice for helping him and his family’s speedy recoveries from COVID-19, he called on his own personal experience when defending the longtime UFC color man. And he also accused doctors of withholding valuable treatment options from the public.
“Well, how about this? Ever since I came out and said what I did, it’s almost impossible now to get monoclonal antibodies,” White said. “They’re making it so you can’t get ’em. Medicine that absolutely works, they’re keeping from (us). I don’t want to get too political and start getting into all this shit, but ivermectin and monoclonal antibodies have been around for a long time. Now all of a sudden you can’t dig ’em up to save your life. Doctors won’t give ’em to ya.
“And even when I did it here in Vegas, which was, however many weeks ago that I had it…I made one phone call and was able to get it done. And that’s not like some fuckin’ rich, famous-guy shit. Like, anybody could’ve called….now, Rogan’s been talking about it, then I went crazy talking about it, you can’t get those things to save your life now, literally.”
White was then asked if he’s surprised that people are not being allowed to even openly discuss alternative treatment options to COVID-19. The UFC boss provided the following strong response.
“It’s disgusting. It’s disgusting,” White said. “Yeah, it’s one of the craziest things I’ve ever witnessed in my life. And we’re not talking about experimental drugs. This stuff’s been around.”
At this point, someone in the audience shouted out, sarcastically asking White if he is a doctor.
“No, but I took ’em, and they both worked for me, so why shouldn’t I be able to take ’em again—or other people?”
After poking fun at the audience member’s outburst as another example of people trying to silence the conversation around this topic, White went on to use the prescription rate of pain relievers as an example of the health care system’s hypocrisy.
“You want to know what’s scary? Bet I can get some fuckin’ pain pills quicker than I can get monoclonal antibodies,” White said. “No, not maybe. That’s a fact. That’s a fact. They fuckin’ hand out pain pills like they’re Tic Tacs….Monoclonal antibodies and ivermectin isn’t gonna do anything to ya. Pain pills kill ya. Fact. And I’m not a doctor, but that’s a fact,” White concluded with a light chuckle.
What are your thoughts on Dana White’s comments?
