Four prison inmates in Arkansas have filed a lawsuit in federal court over being treated with Ivermectin after being diagnosed with COVID.
However, unlike a number of suits where plaintiffs have sought permission to take the experimental treatment, the inmates say they were given the anti-parasitic medication without being told what it was.
The suit alleges they were only told they’d be receiving “vitamins,” “antibiotics,” and “steroids.”
Ivermectin has not been approved by the FDA for treatment of COVID.
“No one — including incarcerated individuals — should be deceived and subject to medical experimentation,” said Gary Sullivan, legal director of the American Civil Liberties Union of Arkansas, according to NPR. “Sheriff Helder has a responsibility to provide food, shelter and safe, appropriate care to incarcerated individuals.”
Washington County Sheriff Tim Helder and the Washington County Detention Center are named as defendants in the suit along with Dr. Robert Karas and his medical practice Karas Health Care.
The plaintiffs – Dayman Blackburn, Eldrick Floreal-Wooten, Julio Gonzales and Jeremiah Little – say that despite the drug not being an authorized treatment for the coronavirus, they were given “high doses” of Ivermectin and experienced side effects including vision issues, bloody stool, stomach cramps and diarrhea.
The Washington County Sheriff’s Office will not comment on pending litigation, but Helder spoke positively of the treatment his inmates received from Karas Health Care during a Washington County Finance and Budget Committee meeting, according to KNWA. Helder also said he leaves the prescription of medication to the doctors and doesn’t concern himself with what the inmates under his supervision are given.
As for Karas, his practice’s Facebook page posted, “Inmates aren't dumb and I suspect in the future other inmates around the country will be suiing [sic] their facilities requesting same treatment we're using at WCDC-including the Ivermectin.”
Karas Health Care is currently being investigated by the Arkansas State Medical Board, according to NBC News.
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