Four men detained at the Washington County Detention Center in Arkansas who said they were given ivermectin to treat COVID-19 have now filed a federal lawsuit against the detention center, sheriff and doctor.
In the lawsuit, obtained by Inside Edition Digital, the men say they were given what they were told were “’vitamins,’ ‘antibiotics,’ and/or ‘steroids’”COVID-19 was treated last year, but the patients claim that they were given the antiparasite drug ivermectin by their doctors without their consent.
Arkansas law requires that medical providers warn patients about potential dangers of future treatment.
The Food and Drug Administration and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention issued several statements indicating that ivermectin was not safe to be used in the treatment of COVID-19.
“Certain animal formulations of ivermectin such as pour-on, injectable, paste, and ‘drench,’ are approved in the U.S. to treat or prevent parasites in animals. For humans, ivermectin tablets are approved at very specific doses to treat some parasitic worms, and there are topical (on the skin) formulations for head lice and skin conditions like rosacea,”The FDA.
The lawsuit claims that the drug was given to the men after they tested positive for COVID-19.
“Plaintiffs tested positive for COVID in late August 2021. As a result, the County Defendants relocated Plaintiffs to a barracks that was specifically designated as a quarantine block for those with the disease or those with a close contact to the same,”The lawsuit states. “Upon information and belief, during this time twenty-two detained peoples were housed in the quarantine block. Once in the quarantine block, Plaintiffs were given a cocktail of drugs by Karas Defendants to allegedly treat COVID-19. The drugs were administered twice a day, and ranged in volume between 2-10 pills. The drugs consisted of high doses of vitamins and the drug Ivermectin.”
One of the men received 3.4 times the prescribed dosage of ivermectin for fighting worms. A second man received nearly 6.3 times that amount, when administered properly according to the suit.
Side effects were experienced by the men “consistent with the overuse of ivermectin,”Included “vision issues, diarrhea, bloody stools, and/or stomach cramps,”They said so. They also “experienced mental distress, anger, and lingering mistrust of
Defendants for permitting the use of, and administering, a drug in disregard of a FDA warning and without their knowledge or consent,”The suit was said.
The suit claims that the men would not have taken the suit if they had known the contents or been informed of possible side effects.
“To add insult to injury, Plaintiffs were subject to the payment of fees for medical examinations they sought after suffering side effects from the Ivermectin treatment. Pursuant to the contract between KCH and the County Defendants, those fees are payable to KCH, providing financial incentive to Dr. Karas as the sole member of KCH,”The suit was said.
The lawsuit filed last week names the Washington County Detention Center its staff, Washington County Sheriff Tim Helder, Karas Correctional Health, its staff and Dr. Robert Karas as defendants.
Helder stated in August that inmates had received ivermectin as a treatment for coronavirus. ABC News reported. He said he only learned after the fact that ivermectin was used in the jail, but that he wouldn’t second-guess or override the decisions of medical staff, The Northwest Arkansas Democrat Gazette reported.
Inside Edition Digital reached out to Karas, Helder, and the detention center for no response.
ABC News reported that Karas had previously said that no inmates were forced into taking the drug. ABC News reported that Karas said he started giving the drug at the detention centre in November 2020.
Arkansas Medical Board has been investigating Karas’ allegations regarding the Washington County Detention Center’s use of Ivermectin. It is expected that the investigation will be discussed at an ABC News meeting in February.
Karas, his attorney, wrote to a Medical Board investigator in September. According to ABC News, 254 of the inmates had been given ivermectin.
In a letter obtained ABC News by Dr. Karas, Dr. Karas indicated that it was the individual who administered the Ivermectin who determined how much information was provided to the detainees. Paramedics had not been given “required counseling details” to discuss the drug with detainees, the letter said. The process had since been improved, according to Dr. Karas.
“Since the inception of the media coverage, we adopted a more robust informed consent form to assuage any concern that any detainees were being misled or coerced into taking the medications, even though they weren’t,”The letter stated.
The suit seeks to have the men be evaluated by an independent physician and ordered that they be placed under medical supervision. “awarded their costs, fees, and any other appropriate relief to which they are entitled.”