Does ivermectin work against covid-19?
5:06
(CNN) -
The Arkansas Medical Board is conducting an investigation after a doctor said he prescribed the deworming drug ivermectin "thousands" of times for the treatment of COVID-19, including to inmates at an Arkansas jail.
The FDA has been warning about the use of ivermectin for the treatment of COVID-19 since March.
The drug is used to treat parasitic infections, primarily in livestock, and the CDC recently warned of increasing reports to poison centers of serious illnesses caused by the drug.
Right-wing media promoted ivermectin, an antiparasitic drug, to treat COVID-19.
FDA says it's not safe for humans
Justice of the Peace Eva Madison raised the issue during a county budget hearing in Fayetteville on Tuesday, noting that a county employee had told her that the jail's medical provider was prescribing ivermectin to treat and prevent COVID-19.
The county clerk - who does not work for the sheriff's office - was directed to jail to receive a COVID-19 test, Madison told CNN.
During the visit, he was prescribed ivermectin, which the Arkansas Department of Health also advises against using to treat or prevent COVID-19.
Ivermectin is used to treat parasitic infections, mainly in cattle.
(Credit: LUIS ROBAYO / AFP via Getty Images)
"He is very afraid of retaliation from the county and that is why he asked me to raise this issue on his behalf," Madison said.
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"To my surprise, he (the sheriff) defended the use. He defended the practice," Madison said.
The sheriff offered to put Madison in contact with the medical provider.
Screenshots of the exchange of messages with the sheriff provided by Madison confirm her account.
"Thousands" of people took ivermectin
Dr. Robert Karas provides medical services to the Washington County Jail.
It has been the contracted provider since 2015, according to Madison.
Madison said Karas defended her use of the drug during a phone conversation and again in a subsequent television interview after the practice came to light.
Karas told KFSM television station that he began prescribing the drug in October 2020 and has subsequently administered it to relatives and "thousands" of people.
The doctor also recorded the station's interview with his own camera and uploaded it to the Internet.
"Do you want us to try to fight like we're on the beaches of Normandy? Or do you want me to tell you what a lot of people do and say, oh, go home and hang on and go to the ER when your lips turn blue," Karas said. .
The ethical dilemma of prescribing ivermectin against covid-19 2:47
Karas said he began using ivermectin in the prison population starting in November in "high-risk patients over 40 years old."
The doctor defended his practice, saying that no deaths due to COVID-19 have been reported out of the 531 cases in jail.
CNN called the Washington County Sheriff's Office to confirm the number of COVID-19 patients treated in jail and was referred to Karas as he is hired to provide medical services.
Calls to the doctor's office have not been returned.
Ongoing research on Dr. Karas
The Arkansas Medical Board has opened an investigation into the matter, Meg Mirivel, a spokeswoman for the Arkansas Department of Health, told CNN.
Due to the ongoing investigation, the department was unable to comment further.
The Sheriff's Department declined to comment further or provide additional information on inmate care.
The Sheriff's Office defended the practices to the local newspaper, saying that all treatment is "voluntary."
Ivermectin and covid-19: what the doctors say 6:06
"They can refuse any medication offered to them. Even with the vaccine, everything is voluntary," Deputy Sheriff Jay Cantrell told the Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette.
"I believe it is the constitutional obligation of the county and the sheriff to provide detainees with adequate and appropriate medical care," Madison told CNN.
ANALYSIS |
What the ivermectin debacle reveals about anti-vaccine hypocrisy
"No one - including incarcerated individuals - should be subjected to medical experiments," said Holly Dickson, executive director of the ACLU of Arkansas, in a statement, adding that the sheriff "has a responsibility to provide food, shelter and safe care and suitable for incarcerated persons. "
In a CDC health advisory issued Thursday, the agency said that the use of ivermectin can cause "gastrointestinal symptoms such as nausea, vomiting and diarrhea. Overdoses are associated with hypotension and neurological effects such as decreased consciousness, confusion, hallucinations, seizures, coma, and death. "
With input from Jen Christensen and Travis Caldwell.
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