COLUMBUS, Ohio — A handfull of Republicans at the Ohio Statehouse introduced a bill Thursday to make alternative drugs and treatments, that have not been approved by the Food and Drug Administration, allowed to treat COVID-19. Meanwhile, pharmacists said the bill is dangerous for several reasons.

What You Need To Know

  • HB 631 would allow doctors and pharmacists to prescribe drugs like Ivermectin or Hydroxychloroquine to Ohioans suffering from COVID-19

  • The FDA has said these drugs are not safe or effective in preventing or treating the virus

  • The bill states a government agency, pharmacy or health care facility could not suppress any promotion or access to the alternative treatments and could not "reprimand, threaten or penalize" a doctor for doing so

Rep. Kris Jordan, R-Ostrander, is the primary sponsor of HB 631, which would allow doctors and pharmacists to prescribe drugs like Ivermectin or Hydroxychloroquine to Ohioans suffering from COVID-19. The FDA has said these drugs are not safe or effective in preventing or treating the virus.

Jordan could not be reached for comment.

Ernie Boyd, R.Ph., executive director of the Ohio Pharmacists Association, said while the OPA has not decided if it supports the bill in its current form, the group does support doctors and pharmacists rights to prescribe "off label" drugs while understanding the increased liability that exists for both medical professional and patients.​

"Research constantly evolves. These drugs may become the best thing to be treating the the issue, or they may become something that we don't want to be using it. One of the drugs, hydroxychloroquine, does have serious heart side effects when combined with certain antibiotics and others," Boyd said. ​

The bill states a government agency, pharmacy or health care facility could not suppress any promotion or access to the alternative treatments and could not "reprimand, threaten or penalize" a doctor for doing so. If an agency or facility did, they could be sued.

The bill is likely to get more opposition from others in the medical community. ​In an email, Todd Baker, the CEO of the Ohio State Medical Association said, "We are just beginning to review the bill internally and don’t have any comment at this point. Clearly, any time policymakers try to legislate the clinical aspects of healthcare delivery raises concern for us."

The bill has seven Republican co-sponsors, who previously wanted the state to ban vaccine mandates. It has yet to be assigned to a committee.

Related Stories