Ivermectin for the prevention and/or treatment of COVID-19

OIA response

17 September 2021

Dear [name and contact details withheld] 

Request for information

Thank you for your email of 2 September 2021 regarding our response to your request about ivermectin under the Official Information Act 1982 (OIA). You wrote: 

I asked why you have restricted use [of ivermectin] for the prevention and/or treatment of Covid-19 ie: my doctor is specifically not permitted to prescribe it off label for Covid-19. 

As noted in my previous letter, COVID-19 is not an approved indication for the use of ivermectin, according to the Medsafe datasheet. 

Medsafe is the agency responsible for monitoring and regulating the use of unapproved medicines, and the use of medicines for unapproved indications. You may find the following information useful: 

I note that we have provided you with all the information we have available on ivermectin, within the scope of your OIA request. 

We trust that this information answers your queries. Please get in touch with us if you have any further questions. 

Yours sincerely 

Rachel Read
Manager, Policy and Government Services