BATON ROUGE, La. — The Louisiana Department of Health says it "strongly recommends against the use of ivermectin for the treatment or prevention of COVID-19."
The department issued the opinion Wednesday afternoon, saying that the Food and Drug Administration has received multiple reports of patients who have required medical support and been hospitalized after using ivermectin intended for horses on their own.
"The FDA has not approved or authorized ivermectin for cases of COVID-19," said the Department of Health. "Ivermectin tablets are approved at very specific doses for some parasitic worms in humans, as well as topical treatments for head lice and skin conditions, like rosacea."
The Department of Health warned that in large doses like those intended for horses, ivermectin can be highly toxic and cause serious harm.
"I know people are concerned about the Delta variant and our recent COVID surge and may have questions," said Dr. Joseph Kanter. "Please beware of misinformation online including around ivermectin. The FDA has not approved or authorized ivermectin for preventing or treating cases of COVID-19. If you want to prevent COVID-19, get the COVID-19 vaccine. All three vaccines are safe and effective, all three were authorized by the FDA, and Pfizer was just approved by the FDA for those 16 years old and above."
COVID cases have surged in Louisiana, which has one of the lowest vaccination rates in the country.
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