A Florida teacher hospitalized with COVID-19 has died after her husband unsuccessfully sued to force doctors to treat her with ivermectin, a drug popular among some skeptics of accepted coronavirus treatments despite a lack of studies proving its effectiveness.
Tamara Drock died Friday, 12 weeks after being admitted to Palm Beach Gardens Medical Center, Ryan Drock told the Palm Beach Post.
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He sued the hospital last month in an attempt to require doctors to administer ivermectin, a drug used to treat conditions caused by parasitic worms. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has not approved the drug to treat COVID-19, saying it hasn’t proved effective in pre-clinical trials.
Drock told WPTV he even offered to sign a waiver releasing the hospital from any liability for treating her with ivermectin, writing that his wife’s physician had previously prescribed ivermectin for her.
Palm Beach County Circuit Judge James Nutt rejected Drock's lawsuit last month, saying allowing judges to countermand doctor's decisions could set a dangerous precedent.
He urged the Drocks and the hospital to try to reach agreement on their own. A deal fell apart after a doctor agreed to administer ivermectin at a dosage the family's attorney said was too low, the newspaper reported.
Tenet Healthcare, which owns the hospital, did not respond to messages seeking comment, the paper reported.
Ryan Drock, who also was infected but recovered from COVID, told the Post he's not giving up.
“I’m hoping they name a law after her so no one has to go through this,” Drock said. “If she had walked out of the hospital she could have had the medication.”
Ivermectin is approved by the FDA for human use to treat infections caused by some parasitic worms and head lice and skin conditions like rosacea.