Govt urged to fast-track approval of ivermectin use for Covid-19

KUALA LUMPUR – A group of six medical and consumer-related non-governmental organisations has urged the government to immediately approve the use of ivermectin to treat Covid-19 patients in Malaysia.

The group, known as Malaysian Alliance for Effective Covid-19 Control (MAECC) claimed that ivermectin is a very safe drug recently noted to have very useful and powerful benefits in the treatment of Covid-19.

The group is of the view that treatment using ivermectin is a viable alternative, especially for patients in the early stages of Covid-19.

“We urge the government to position this drug and repurpose it as first-line therapy for outpatients.

“We plead with the government to exercise its emergency powers to fast-track the use of ivermectin and the appropriate supplements for immune enhancement for all individuals currently in quarantine stations and those in home quarantine too,” said Dr Vijaendreh Subramaniam, the president of the Malaysian Association for the Advancement of Functional and Interdisciplinary Medicine (Maafim), during an online media conference today.

The conference was also attended by Prof Dr Mustafa Ali from Maafim, who is also the medical director of Mahsa University.

Mustafa said ivermectin has been used for the last four decades, with more than 3.7 billion doses prescribed, and claimed that it is one of the safest drugs in the pharmacopoeia. 

He said that the MAECC is very confident that the Covid-19 pandemic can be overcome sooner rather than later.

“Our country may reopen its economy and reboot commerce, and our people may get their lives back on track in a matter of weeks.

“It will be unethical if Covid-19 patients are not allowed the right to be treated with ivermectin, particularly if they meet an untimely end,” he said.

Health director-general Tan Sri Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah had previously said that the Health Ministry and Institute for Clinical Research have started clinical trials to study the use and efficacy of ivermectin for high-risk Covid-19 patients at 12 of the ministry’s hospitals. – Bernama, June 21, 2021