Bill On Over-The-Counter Sales Of Ivermectin Moves Forward

In one of its first acts of the 2026 legislative session, the Senate Health and Human Resources Committee is recommending the full Senate pass Senate Bill 42 – which authorizes over-the-counter sales of Ivermectin. 

The drug is used to treat fairly common parasitic infections but it’s also been investigated for successful treatment against certain cancers. More recently it was linked to treatment of the COVID-19 virus. 

A handful of states allow it to be sold over-the-counter. Sen. Patricia Rucker, R-Jefferson, is among those who’d like West Virginia to do that, too.

“It’s something that’s happening now, just like many other drugs are made over the counter when they have very few side effects and are generally safe. Ivermectin is one of those drugs,” Rucker said.

In Thursday’s committee meeting Sen. Tom Takubo, R-Kanawha, a pulmonologist, said the drug is generally “pretty benign.” But he remembered using it in large doses during the COVID-19 pandemic when he had patients who were, he said, “dying by the droves.” He likened Ivermectin’s use to “grasping at straws.” 

“I had scores and scores of people on ventilators fighting for their lives. I ran the dose to very toxic levels,” Takubo said. “We did everything we could to try to save people. It just didn’t work.”

But Sen. Rollan Roberts, R-Raleigh, had a very different experience – as a patient. He’s had COVID-19 twice, and said the first time he spent five weeks on life support. 

“Both times I took Ivermectin in the early days of my diagnosis,” Roberts said. “I know that my symptoms and my wife’s symptoms diminished significantly within 24 to 48 hours of taking it.”

Among the concerns expressed were the risk of significant side effects, particularly when taken in large doses, and how best to inform patients about the right dosages and risks. 

The bill has a second reference to the Judiciary Committee before it moves to a vote in the full Senate.