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FACT BRIEF

Are doctors in Western countries being arrested for prescribing ivermectin?

By Ed Payne
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NO

Contrary to a claim on social media, no doctors in Western countries have been arrested for prescribing ivermectin.

Representatives of the American Medical Association, the Federation of State Medical Boards, and Health Canada told Lead Stories they knew of no health professionals who had been arrested for authorizing the use of ivermectin.

The antiparasitic medication has been promoted by the anti-vaccination movement as a treatment for COVID-19. 

Ivermectin is a widely prescribed medicine around the world. Ivermectin tablets are approved by the FDA to treat certain infections caused by internal and external parasites. In addition, some topical forms of ivermectin are approved to treat external parasites like head lice and for skin conditions such as rosacea. The drug is not approved to treat any viral infection. 

See a full discussion of this at Lead Stories
This fact brief is responsive to conversations such as this one.
Sources
Food and Drug Administration Why You Should Not Use Ivermectin to Treat or Prevent COVID-19
ABOUT THE CONTRIBUTOR
Lead Stories
Lead Stories is a fact checking and debunking website at the intersection of big data and journalism that launched in 2015. It scouts for trending stories, images, videos and posts that contain false information in order to fact check them as quickly as possible. It actively monitors the fake-news ecosystem and doesn’t wait for reader tips or reports before getting started on a story.
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About fact briefs published on Gigafact
Fact briefs are short, credibly sourced summaries that offer “yes/no” answers in response to claims found online. They rely on publicly available, often primary source data and documents. Fact briefs are created by contributors to Gigafact —a nonprofit project looking to expand participation in fact-checking and protect the democratic process. See all fact briefs here.