Concerns About Ivermectin Now Being Available Without Prescription
As Ivermectin Goes Over the Counter, Some Pharmacists Worry About a Lack of Guidance
Boise, Idaho, pharmacist Matt Murray has no choice but to disappoint the handful of people who call him every day asking for a drug used to treat parasitic worms.
He could give them the medication, called ivermectin, but only with a doctor’s note.
The callers aren’t in the throes of an active intestinal worm infestation, Murray said. They simply want access to the pills without having to see a doctor first.
“A lot of people are calling, asking, ‘Do you guys have it for sale? Can I buy it? How do I get it?’” said Murray, the director of operations for the independent Customedica Pharmacy. “Not so much, ‘How does it work? What is it for?’”
The volume of such calls has increased sharply since mid-April, when Idaho Gov. Brad Little, a Republican, signed a bill into law mandating that ivermectin be available to anyone who wants it over the counter. While the law technically says that pharmacists like Murray can sell the drug over the counter, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration hasn’t approved it to be used this way.
FDA Approves Merck’s RSV Shot for Infants, Ramping up Competition With Sanofi and AstraZeneca
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration on Monday approved Merck’s shot designed to protect infants from respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) during their first season of the virus, bringing to market a rival to a similar treatment from Sanofi and AstraZeneca.
The decision will allow the company to launch the drug, which will be marketed as Enflonsia, ahead of the RSV season that typically kicks off around fall and winter and lasts through the spring. Merck said in a release that it expects orders for the shot to begin in July, with shipments delivered before the virus starts to spread widely.
The approval gives doctors a new treatment option for the virus, which causes thousands of deaths among older Americans and hundreds of deaths among infants each year. Complications from RSV are the leading cause of hospitalization among newborns.
“We are committed to ensuring availability of [Enflonsia] in the U.S. before the start of the upcoming RSV season to help reduce the significant burden of this widespread seasonal infection on families and health care systems,” Dr. Dean Li, president of Merck Research Laboratories, said in a release.
No Drug Price Pledges by Pfizer, Others in Talks With US Government, Pfizer CEO Says
Pfizer and other drug companies have met with the Trump administration to discuss lowering U.S. drug prices but no commitments have been made, Chief Executive Albert Bourla said on Monday. President Donald Trump issued an executive order last month directing drugmakers to lower the prices of their medicines to align with what other countries pay.
According to the order, the administration was to set “Most Favored Nation” price targets within 30 days. The Department of Health and Human Services has said it expects drugmakers in the U.S. to set prices for their products at the lowest price paid by other high-income countries.
“I don’t know what we will hear in 30 days,” Bourla said, speaking at Goldman Sachs’ Global Healthcare Conference. “The administration already started series of meetings with companies. … The meetings were cordial, but they were not digging into the substance,” he said, adding that they focused on high-level ideas.
Feeling RSV Heat From Merck, Sanofi Lays out Early Supply Plans for Beyfortus
One day before the potential U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval of a rival respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) monoclonal antibody from Merck & Co., Sanofi has revealed an aggressive supply effort for its RSV blockbuster Beyfortus, including a plan to begin shipping its AstraZeneca-partnered shot early in the third quarter.
Sanofi said that the current Beyfortus supply for the upcoming RSV season “already matches the total doses distributed last year,” while production remains ongoing. The companies added that they have tripled production capacity and doubled their number of manufacturing sites since the launch Beyfortus in 2023.
“Our third year of providing RSV protection marks a transformative era in infant health,” Thomas Triomphe, Sanofi’s vaccine chief, said in Monday’s release. “Backed by more than 40 real-world studies involving 250,000 immunized infants, Beyfortus has consistently proven itself as an effective RSV immunization.”
GLP-1 Drug Can Cause Rare, Potentially Blinding Side Effect, EMA Warns
A potentially blinding condition is a very rare side effect of the GLP-1 receptor agonist semaglutide (Ozempic, Wegovy, Rybelsus), the European Medicines Agency (EMA) concluded. Following a review of all available data, the EMA’s Pharmacovigilance Risk Assessment Committee determined that semaglutide increases the risk for non-arteritic anterior ischemic optic neuropathy (NAION).
As a result, the agency recommended a product information update to include NAION as a “very rare” side effect. This means it could affect up to one in 10,000 people taking semaglutide.
“If patients experience a sudden loss of vision or rapidly worsening eyesight during treatment with semaglutide, they should contact their doctor without delay. If NAION is confirmed, treatment with semaglutide should be stopped,” the EMA urged.
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