The FDA has agreed to remove and will not republish content on social media suggesting that Ivermectin, a drug used to treat COVID-19, is suitable only for animals and not for humans.
The FDA still maintains its position that using Ivermectin to treat COVID-19 is wrong.
However, it has settled the lawsuit brought by three doctors who sued the FDA and its secretary, Robert Califf, as well as the Department of Health and Human Services and its secretary, Xavier Becerra.
The lawsuit has been settled among all parties.
The lawsuit was filed by Mary Talley Bowden, Paul Marik, and Robert Apter on June 2, 2022. It alleged that the FDA was interfering with their ability to practice medicine.
Initially, the case was dismissed, citing that the FDA had complete immunity, a ruling that was later overturned by a U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit on grounds that the regulatory authority is not a physician.
The court also observed that medical advice, however trivial, is beyond the scope of the FDA’s statutory authority.
The settlement was reached between the doctors and the FDA on Thursday. As per the settlement, the FDA will remove a Consumer Update titled,
“Why You Should Not Use Ivermectin to Treat or Prevent COVID-19.”
The FDA has said that it will remove the posts within 21 days and then archive them as directed by law.
The settlement also requires the FDA not to republish the posts on X (formerly Twitter), LinkedIn, and Facebook.
An FDA post had read,
“You are not a horse. You are not a cow. Seriously, y’all. Stop it,” in reference to the use of Ivermectin for treating COVID-19.
Here are some posts that the FDA had made on different social sites:
On Instagram:
“You are not a horse. Stop it with the #ivermectin. It’s not authorized for treating #COVID.”
On Twitter:
“Hold your horses, y’all. Ivermectin may be trending, but it isn’t authorized or approved to treat COVID-19.”
The issue burst onto the national scene when podcaster Joe Rogan interviewed CNN chief medical correspondent Sanjay Gupta over the former’s use of Ivermectin, whereas CNN repeatedly dubbed the medicine as an Equus dewormer.
Ivermectin is an old drug that has been approved for both human and veterinary use. It is used topically for treating lice infestation, while orally it is used to treat parasites.
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