Mary Talley Bowden on ivermectin: what the evidence says · JRE #2335
SUBJECT: IVERMECTIN
Not a true/false call. Every claim is logged with its sources; read the exhibits below.
Seventeen states have had bills in the last legislative session trying to get ivermectin over the counter. Three have been successful. So, Tennessee, Idaho, and Arkansas. Four is still in deliberations, and 10 they failed.
What the evidence says 01 / RECORD
The three states Bowden names as successful match the legislative record: Idaho enacted Senate Bill 1211, signed April 14, 2025, allowing ivermectin to be sold without a prescription, and Arkansas enacted SB189 (Act 396) on March 25, 2025, authorizing ivermectin for human use to be sold without a prescription. Tennessee was the earlier adopter, having passed its law in 2022, so it predates the most recent legislative session rather than being a fresh success. Contemporary reporting counted roughly 15 states introducing such bills during the 2025 wave rather than 17, and the exact split of four still pending versus ten failed cannot be independently confirmed and appears to reflect a fluid, point-in-time tally. Note that these laws remove a prescription requirement but do not change the underlying medical evidence: the FDA and NIH have found ivermectin is not effective for and is not approved to prevent or treat COVID-19. The count of introduced bills and the pass or fail breakdown are approximate, but the core claim (three states enacting OTC ivermectin laws, named as Tennessee, Idaho, and Arkansas) is largely accurate.
Evidence sources 03 / EXHIBITS
Who Benefits
Bowden is a physician who prescribes ivermectin through her own practice and is a prominent public campaigner for expanded ivermectin access, so she has a professional and advocacy interest in the over-the-counter laws she is describing.