BARTOW -- At Tuesday's meeting, Polk County commissioners will take up a letter asking Governor DeSantis to make it easier for patients to get hold of ivermectin to treat COVID-19.
The letter, drafted by Commissioner Neil Combee, says commissioners are hearing from citizens that "large hospital chains and some pharmacies" are refusing to prescribe "safe and effective therapeutics like hydroxychloroquine and ivermectin." Combee's letter says people should have the "right to try" both drugs. The letter urges the governor to take action to protect the right to use both drugs.
Ivermectin, an anti-parasitic or deworming drug, has been touted as a COVID-19 treatment, driving people to buy the veterinary version, causing feed stores to run out of the product. The American Medical Association has called for an "immediate end" to the use of ivermectin to treat COVID-19. The AMA says ivermectin has not been shown to combat the virus and poison control centers are reporting an increase in ivermectin-related calls.
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