Feb 21, 2025 12:12 AM
(This post was last modified: Feb 21, 2025 12:15 AM by C C.)
Ivermectin, hydroxychloroquine prescriptions during the COVID-19 pandemic soared far above pre-pandemic levels
https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/1074447
INTRO: U.S. outpatient prescriptions for hydroxychloroquine and ivermectin increased 2- to 10-fold above pre-pandemic rates, respectively, to treat COVID-19, despite strong evidence disproving their effectiveness, new UCLA-led research shows.
Nearly three million COVID-related prescriptions were issued in the three and a half years between January 30, 2020 and June 30, 2023, totaling $272 million in estimated spending. Usage was three times higher among adults aged 65 and older compared with those aged 18 to 64. Ivermectin use in particular was higher among people living in the most socially vulnerable neighborhoods and markedly higher in the Southern United States.
These findings, published in the peer-reviewed journal Health Affairs, may inform future policies aimed at reducing the harms caused by reliance on non-evidence-based treatments, especially among vulnerable communities.
“Our findings underscore the urgent need for policy reforms to combat misinformation and mistrust in scientific institutions. Eliminating undue industry influence in government, enhancing transparency around scientific uncertainty, and earmarking public funding for clinical trials of new drugs are good places to start,” said Dr. John Mafi, associate professor-in-residence in the UCLA Division of General Internal Medicine and Health Services Research and the study’s senior author... (MORE - details, no ads)
https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/1074447
INTRO: U.S. outpatient prescriptions for hydroxychloroquine and ivermectin increased 2- to 10-fold above pre-pandemic rates, respectively, to treat COVID-19, despite strong evidence disproving their effectiveness, new UCLA-led research shows.
Nearly three million COVID-related prescriptions were issued in the three and a half years between January 30, 2020 and June 30, 2023, totaling $272 million in estimated spending. Usage was three times higher among adults aged 65 and older compared with those aged 18 to 64. Ivermectin use in particular was higher among people living in the most socially vulnerable neighborhoods and markedly higher in the Southern United States.
These findings, published in the peer-reviewed journal Health Affairs, may inform future policies aimed at reducing the harms caused by reliance on non-evidence-based treatments, especially among vulnerable communities.
“Our findings underscore the urgent need for policy reforms to combat misinformation and mistrust in scientific institutions. Eliminating undue industry influence in government, enhancing transparency around scientific uncertainty, and earmarking public funding for clinical trials of new drugs are good places to start,” said Dr. John Mafi, associate professor-in-residence in the UCLA Division of General Internal Medicine and Health Services Research and the study’s senior author... (MORE - details, no ads)