Tennessee Pharmacies Sell Potent Ivermectin, Led by Anti-Vaccine Doctor Who’s Taken ‘Bucketloads’

The physician has fueled sales of the controversial drug in the Volunteer State, where it can now be dispensed without requiring a doctor visit. NASHVILLE, Tenn.

— Four years ago, Tennessee became the first state to allow adults to buy the antiparasitic drug ivermectin from a pharmacy without first seeing a doctor. Pharmacies can use a pre-written, blanket prescription to sell to just about anyone who walks through their doors.

The drug is now marketed and sold across the state in roadside shops and small-town strip malls with little oversight from health authorities. Highway billboards advertise ivermectin as “Available Without a Prescription in Tennessee!” while dozens of pharmacies offer highly concentrated pills, sometimes at 10 or 20 times the potency of a standard tablet.

Ivermectin is a Nobel Prize-winning, generally safe drug approved by the FDA for treating parasitic diseases in humans , which can generally be done with a single dose of three or four prescription-strength tablets. It is also used as a dewormer for horses and other livestock.