On Friday, Attorney General Alan Wilson released an opinion that said physicians in South Carolina have the authority to use "off-label" drugs such as Ivermectin or hydroxychloroquine to treat COVID patients. Republicans Sen. Shane Martin and Rep. Bill Taylor requested the opinion and asked whether state law allows doctors to prescribe Ivermectin or hydroxychloroquine or other off-label drugs to prevent or treat COVID.
"Our doctors, as well as their patients, need to know that doctors have the right to make important medical decisions, as long as they have the informed consent of their patients. In fighting COVID, the doctor should be given the broadest possible leeway," AG Wilson said in the press release announcing the opinion on Friday.
The AG admitted that it was beyond their office's "expertise" to comment on whether "off-label" drugs are appropriate to treat or prevent COVID, but that South Carolina state law "strongly protects the medical judgment of the physician in this circumstance. It is clear that an attending physician possesses especially broad discretion to prescribe what he or she deems the appropriate medication in a given situation."
The press release highlighted that the opinion "does not include a determination of the propriety of a prescription for Ivermectin or hydroxychloroquine" because the decision lies in the attending physician to do so. But lawmakers also underscored how physicians' decisions are protected by the state law especially if informed consent from the patient is obtained.
According to WND, Sen. Martin and Rep. Taylor raised concerns about how hospitals in South Carolina refused to allow doctors to prescribe ivermectin, hydroxychloroquine, or other "off-label use medication" to treat or prevent COVID. They asked the AG to weigh in if there was "any prohibition" to restrict South Carolina doctors from prescribing such drugs for COVID. This was the result of the inquiry.
Dr. Peter McCullough, a vocal proponent of ivermectin and hydroxychloroquine as treatment for COVID, praised the Attorney General's recent decision. He took to Twitter to share how he testified to the SOuth Carolina State Committee on Medical Affairs, providing "the evidence base for these medications in the early treatment of the illness." He added that the AG's opinion will finally prevent pharmacists from preventing access to "off-label" drugs for COVID.
Wilson wrote in his opinion that the "physician-patient relationship is given constitutional dimension by the courts and broad - if not absolute - deference in a doctor's prescribing medications to his or her patient, whether such prescriptions relate to off-label use or not." The South Carolina AG added that courts have shown a "reluctance" in interfering with doctor-patient relationships as well as hospital policies.
Rep. Taylor meanwhile lauded the AG's opinion, which he believes will "bolster" the position of "brave doctors" who have to administer the drugs in secret or without knowledge of the hospital. He defended these doctors, lamenting that they have been "threatened by their accreditation agencies and hospitals for using successful treatments that have saved lives."
