FDA exec: Human-grade ivermectin legal if prescribed by doctor, compounded by pharmacy

Food and Drug Administration Director-General Eric Domingo said Tuesday that the use of human-grade ivermectin drugs is legal if prescribed by a doctor and compounded by a licensed pharmacy.

Domingo said there is a “legal way” to distribute the human-grade ivermectin in the country. However, the FDA has only approved ivermectin for animal use for now.

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“I suppose, being a congressman, they would do it through a legal way. Of course, if you are going to dispense an antibiotic you have to have a doctor to see a patient and then write a prescription, and the prescription maybe go to a compounding pharmacy and make the drug for the patient and explain to the patient that this is what the drug is, this is what it will do to you, this is the possible effects, and if a patient accepts then of course that is the legal way of doing things,” Domingo said.

The FDA chief that “unauthorized drugs or unregistered drugs” could not be distributed without a prescription from a doctor and it cannot be produced by pharmacies with no license to compound medical drugs.

Domingo revealed that there are “quite few” pharmacies that are licensed to compound medical drugs, noting that ivermectin should be compounded by a pharmacist.

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Ivermectin as COVID-19 treatment

He explained this when asked regarding Dr. Allan Landrito’s revelation in a House health panel hearing that he compounded ivermectin himself to give it to around 8,000 COVID-19 patients.

Landrito is one of the doctors in the country who are pushing for the use of the drug as a treatment drug for COVID-19. He previously claimed that ivermectin reduces COVID-19 mortality rate by 83%.

Domingo said a Certificate of Product Registration application for ivermectin is filed and pending before the FDA.

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He also confirmed what presidential spokesperson Harry Roque said that a compassionate special permit was also filed before the FDA.

However, the compassionate use would only allow the administration of a drug in the country but would not guarantee its safety and efficacy.

“We keep reminding people, you know, we all want to find a cure for COVID-19, but so far, hindi pa talaga kasi kumpleto ang ating [we don’t have enough] scientific evidence for ivermectin against COVID-19,” he said.