Ohio bill encourages use of ivermectin, hydroxychloroquine for COVID-19 patients

A bill promoting the use of ivermectin, hydroxychloroquine and other "Alternative" COVID-19 treatment drugs was introduced Thursday at the Statehouse.

Introduced by Rep. Kris Jordan in the late hours Thursday, House Bill 631 protects and encourages the use of ivermectin, hydroxychloroquine and other drugs not approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to treat COVID-19 patients, according to the bill's text.

So long as a patient or a patient's representative consents to the treatment - and a health care provider deems its use appropriate - Ohioans diagnosed with COVID-19 are eligible to receive drugs like ivermectin or other "Alternative treatments," Jordan's bill reads.

Dr. Iahn Gonsenhauser, the chief quality and patient safety officer at Ohio State's Wexner Medical Center, said the bill's promotion of unauthorized drugs "Absolutely" poses a threat to the health of Ohioans.

The FDA reported a "Rapid increase" in severe illness caused by the ingestion of ivermectin as a COVID-19 treatemtn in August and cautioned against the use of hydroxychloroquine outside of hospital settings due to the risk of cardiovascular problems.

The bill lists four types of drugs: ivermectin, an anti-parasitic drug often used as a deworming agent for pets; hydroxychloroquine, an anti-malarial treatment; budesonide, an obscure steroid; and azithromycin, an antibacterial drug, according to Gonsenhauser.

Poison control centers have increasingly responded to reports of toxicity resulting from the use of ivermectin and hydroxychloroquine by COVID-19 patients, Gonsenhauser said, and the combination of the two drugs increases the likelihood of cardiac arrest.

https://www.nbc4i.com/news/your-local-election-hq/ohio-bill-encourages-use-of-ivermectin-hydroxychloroquine-for-covid-19-patients/