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A detention center in Washington County, Arkansas, uses the pest control drug ivermectin to treat inmates with COVID-19, local officials say, although the United States Food and Drug Administration has specifically warned against this. The FDA says the drug, which is frequently used as a dewormer in animals, is not an approved or recommended treatment for COVID-19 and “can cause serious harm.”
County elected official Eva Madison raised the issue at a finance and budget committee meeting on Tuesday evening. Prison officials presented their 2022 budget, which included prison doctor Dr Rob Karas, asking for a 10% increase in the medical services contract.
Madison informed committee members and prison officials that a county employee, who chose to remain anonymous to the public, told her he had been sent to the prison clinic to be tested for COVID-19. When the person tested negative, they received a prescription for $ 76 for ivermectin. He was concerned about the prescription and asked his GP about it, and the doctor told him to “throw this in the trash,” Madison said.
Eva madison
While this individual “was fortunate to have a doctor he could turn to for a second opinion,” Madison said at the meeting, “our inmates don’t have that choice.”
The FDA has warned against using ivermectin to treat or prevent COVID-19 in humans – but disinformation and unsubstantiated claims touting the drug have spread widely on social media. The agency said it had received “several reports” from people whose use of the drug has forced them to seek medical support or hospitalization.
“Ivermectin tablets are approved in very specific doses for certain parasitic worms, and there are topical (on the skin) formulations for head lice and skin conditions like rosacea,” the FDA said. “Ivermectin is not an antiviral (a medicine to treat viruses).”
Large doses of ivermectin are “dangerous and can cause serious damage,” the agency added.
There have even been reports of several states of people ingesting highly concentrated forms of ivermectin which are used to prevent heartworms and other parasites in animals, including horses and cows. These formulations can be “highly toxic” to humans, according to the FDA.
Ivermectin has been used for COVID-19 in Latin America, where proven vaccines and treatments are less available, but scientists say claims of its purported benefits were based on questionable and possibly manipulated data.
Merck, the company that makes ivermectin, also said in February that there was “no scientific basis for a potential therapeutic effect against COVID-19″ and that the majority of studies on the drug’s potential effect on COVID have a ‘lack of security data. . ”
Karas Health Care, the practice of Dr Karas, has been promoting ivermectin for months. On July 16, the practice posted on Facebook, “If someone you know is positive, send them or [sic] way and we’ll get them going on doxy, singular, ivermectin, vitamin d, vitamin c, and zinc. ”
The post was flagged by Facebook with the message: “Some unapproved COVID-19 treatments can cause serious harm. “
Madison told CBS News on Wednesday that after learning about the order, she contacted County Sheriff Tim Helder.
“The sheriff defended him, said Karas had regularly prescribed ivermectin in prison during the pandemic,” Madison said.
CBS News has contacted the Washington County Sheriff’s Office and Karas Health Care for comment.
Madison said that when she spoke to Karas, he confirmed that he prescribed the drug to inmates at the prison and that he and his family members were also taking it. She said she cited the National Institutes of Health, which said in February that laboratory research suggests ivermectin may inhibit viruses in test tubes. However, the NIH also said that no clinical trials have reported any benefit for human patients with these viruses. The NIH says there is “insufficient evidence” to make a recommendation on ivermectin and that it is not approved to treat viral infection.
“It’s very disturbing to me that this is the level of care we provide to the people in the prison,” Madison said at Tuesday’s meeting.
Prison officials at the meeting said the only control over the doctor’s practices was the state medical board, which issued his license.
“He holds a state license, approved by the board of directors,” one of the officials said.
If detainees have concerns about their medical care, he said, “they can certainly write a letter or go to the state health board with any concerns they have about a doctor. “.
Even with all the warnings from public health officials, the country is increasingly concerned about people trying to self-medicate with ivermectin. Mississippi recently reported an increase in calls to the poison control center, at least 70% of which were related to ivermectin.
In Oklahoma, a local KFOR investigation found that at least 12 Tractor Supply stores were out of animal-grade ivermectin. One store told KFOR it even posted a “Please don’t eat” sign.
CBS affiliate KWTV reports that the Oklahoma Poison and Drug Information Center has received at least 11 calls since May about people showing adverse effects after using animal-grade ivermectin .
“Most of them are people who have purchased and used an animal formulation, a veterinary formulation of the drug,” Scott Schaeffer, pharmacist and CEO of the center, told KWTV. “There’s always the temptation to look for the next best treatment. Ivermectin, in my opinion, isn’t it.”
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