Tennessee Governor Bill Lee (R) has signed a bill that makes ivermectin, an antiviral drug that has been found to be an effective early treatment for COVID-19, available in the state without a prescription.
Lee signed SB 2188, approved by the State Senate, 66-20, and the State House, 22-6, which authorizes a pharmacist to provide ivermectin to patients 18 years of age or older, “pursuant to a valid collaborative pharmacy practice agreement containing a non-patient-specific prescriptive order and standardized procedures developed and executed by one or more authorized prescribers.”
Liberty Counsel, a Christian ministry and litigation firm, noted about the legislation:
That means that adults can explain their symptoms to the pharmacist, fill out a sheet listing any preexisting conditions and other medications they are taking, and the pharmacist can determine the right dosage.
According to the website c19ivermectin.com, 82 studies from 815 scientists, involving 129,808 patients in 27 countries, have shown statistically significant improvement when ivermectin is used to treat COVID-19 in “mortality, ventilation, ICU, hospitalization, recovery, cases, and viral clearance.”
A study published in June 2020 at the Antiviral Research Journal found a single treatment of ivermectin can eradicate 99.8 percent of the coronavirus that causes COVID-19 infection within 48 hours.
Another study, published in the July/August issue of American Journal of Therapeutics, found “large reductions in COVID-19 deaths are possible using ivermectin.”
“Using ivermectin early in the clinical course may reduce numbers progressing to severe disease,” the researchers concluded. “The apparent safety and low cost suggest that ivermectin is likely to have a significant impact on the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic globally.”
Both studies asserted ivermectin is FDA-approved for parasitic infections, and, therefore, holds the potential for “repurposing.”
In 2015, William C. Campbell and Satoshi Ömura received the Nobel Prize in Physiology and Medicine for their discoveries leading to ivermectin.
The National Institutes of Health published an article about ivermectin in October 2020 that stated:
In addition to its extraordinary efficacy against parasitic diseases, ivermectin continues to offer new clinical applications due to its ability to be repurposed to treat new classes of diseases. Beyond its invaluable therapeutic role in onchocerciasis and strongyloidiasis, an increasing body of evidence points to the potential of ivermectin as an antiviral agent.
In November 2020, Joe Biden’s current COVID czar Dr. Ashish Jha penned an op-ed at The New York Times titled, “The Snake-Oil Salesmen of the Senate,” in which Jha mocked Senator Ron Johnson (R-WI) for conducting hearings with physicians who had already successfully treated COVID patients with repurposed medications such as hydroxychloroquine and ivermectin.
Liberty Counsel Founder and Chairman Mat Staver urged all states to follow Tennessee’s lead in making ivermectin easily available to patients.
“Cheap and effective drugs like ivermectin are being denied to the public while pharmaceutical companies make money from COVID shots that are neither safe nor effective,” Staver said in a statement.
“Studies and personal testimonies have repeatedly shown the effectiveness of ivermectin,” he added. “The focus should always be about helping save lives rather than putting more money in the pockets of Big Pharma.”
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Susan Berry, PhD, is national education editor at The Star News Network. Email tips to [email protected].
Background Photo “Ivermectin Pills” by Bundesministerium für Finanzen. CC BY 2.0.
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