WV Senate Health Committee advances bill allowing over-the-counter sale of ivermectin

West Virginia Watch
Caity Coyne
January 15, 2026

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For a second year, members of the Senate Health Committee advanced a bill Thursday to allow pharmacists to sell ivermectin, a medication generally prescribed to treat people with topical conditions or infections that stem from parasitic worms, over-the-counter and without a prescription.

Senate Bill 42 would allow individuals to request ivermectin from pharmacists without having a doctor’s order for treatment of a specific condition or dosage. 

The bill was sponsored by Sen. Patricia Rucker, R-Jefferson, who said she believed risks associated with ivermectin use are minor. She compared it to Tylenol, which can be abused if used irresponsibly but is relatively safe in appropriate doses.

“There are people who have destroyed their stomachs by taking too many over-the-counter medications. It is absolutely a responsibility of the individuals and the pharmacists,” Rucker said. “I do believe that pharmacists have a very good knowledge of what it is that they are not only dispensing, they’re there to educate the consumer when the consumer requests any drugs, whether it is with a prescription or without a prescription.”

Per the proposed bill, no consultation with the pharmacist or a doctor would be required before purchasing the medication. Pharmacists would provide individuals who request the drug with an information sheet on uses approved by the federal Food and Drug Administration. While pharmacists “may” sell the drug, there is no requirement for them to do so.

Pharmacists who sell the medication would be immune from any civil, criminal or professional actions that could arise from someone taking it.

Per the FDA, ivermectin is only authorized for use in humans at specific doses to treat some parasitic worms and, topically, for head lice and skin conditions like rosacea.

Sen. Tom Takubo, R-Kanawha, said he had concerns about over-the-counter access to ivermectin without limits on dosages, especially when it comes to off-label uses. If taken in high doses, he said, the medication can be dangerous.

“My biggest concern with this particular bill … is just the dose and quantity,” Takubo, a doctor by trade, said. “If someone doesn’t know what dose of ivermectin or how much to take then, yes, there are significant toxicities.”

He said pharmacists can only share the information they have. Since there is no scientific evidence or FDA authorization showing that the medication treats antiviral conditions or other illnesses, specifying an appropriate dosage in those uses would be difficult for the pharmacist.

Complications from over-usage, Takubo said, can include a drop in blood pressure, an increase in heart rate, seizures, blindness and the development of Steven Johnson Syndrome, a serious disorder in the skin and mucus membranes that causes skin to shed off.

“My only concern is there’s nothing that prohibits [someone receiving then taking too much of the drug],” Takubo said. “I think this is probably something that will never or rarely ever get used, so it’d be nice if there would be some safeguard or some limit.”

Last year, a similar bill passed out of Senate Health. That bill, however, hinged on over-the-counter access only being possible if the FDA approved the drug for human use in wider circumstances than currently allowed. The bill ultimately died in the Senate Judiciary, where it was not brought up for consideration.

Interest in and pushes for the wider use of ivermectin became common during and after the COVID-19 pandemic, when people alleged that the drug could help treat infections from the virus. To date, no clinical trials or peer-reviewed evidence have been accepted by the FDA to support such claims. 

The drug became a common talking point for COVID-19 conspiracists and, due to this misinformation, health leaders urged the public not to use the drug for off-label purposes, citing concerns over other medications that could be contraindicated and different formulations of it that could be safe for animal consumption but not for humans.

Takubo, a pulmonologist, said that he and other doctors attempted to use ivermectin in severely ill patients in the early days of COVID-19. Even at the highest doses, he said, it did not work. Months later, studies were released showing it as ineffective.

“I ran the dose to very toxic levels. We did everything we could to try to save people,” Takubo said. “It just didn’t work.”

Sen. Kevan Bartlett, R-Kanawha, said that while he was “uncomfortable” getting COVID-19 vaccination boosters after receiving an initial dose, he did take ivermectin when he caught the virus. While he acknowledged there was no scientific or medical evidence showing its efficacy, he said his symptoms “significantly diminished” within two days.

“More and more, we need to look for ways to let West Virginians make informed choices and less opportunity [for us] to just dictate choices from the dome here or the dome in Washington,” Bartlett said. “So I support the freedom that comes with this bill in this small particular area.”

Sen. Joey Garcia, D-Marion, called ivermectin a “political football.” Rucker said seeing similar bills implemented in other states inspired her to introduce it again here. But Garcia said that just because other places were doing it didn’t make it “the right thing to do.”

“I do think there are some risks to a bill like this,” Garcia said. “I think there are a lot more important things to do [in the Senate Health Committee], and this should not be a priority.”

The bill will now advance to the Senate Judiciary for lawmakers there to consider.

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The Surprising Potential of Ivermectin Against Cancer: Dr. Kathleen Ruddy

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A Follow-up statement provided by a Wood County constituent.

Thank you, Senator Rucker

Like Sen. Bartlett, all five of us in my household have personally used Ivermectin multiple times when starting flu like symptoms.   It 100% helps us overcome the symptoms before getting worse.  

In 2022, I did the same for my mother, who came down with Covid.  It helped stabilize her symptoms for most of a week until her “Doctor” misinformed her to stop taking it because it was “horse dewormer”.   Within 48 hours, she worsened and I had to call EMTs in the middle of the night.  

Thank God they listened to me when I told them to NOT give her Remdesivir.   When asked at the hospital why no Remdesiver I said “because it will shut down her kidneys and kill her,” as it did for so many Americans.  

Unfortunately, she passed in 2024 in part from turbo cancer caused by the Covid shot that the same “Doctor” encouraged.  

In your own words, ask Takubo how many of his patients died after taking the “protocol” Remdesiver, and that much of the public no longer blindly follows everything his profession promotes.   I have no respect for the man who promoted chemical castration for children.  

Thank you again, and keep up the good work!

Call to Action: Call your Elected Officials and Support Senate Bill 42