Ohio's board of pharmacy has banned hydroxychloroquine as a COVID-19 treatment.
As of July 30, pharmacists are prohibited from dispensing or selling the drug to treat COVID-19. Any pharmacist found to be selling or dispensing the drug for COVID-19 purposes could face disciplinary action ranging from a warning or fine to temporary suspension of their license, The Columbus Dispatch reported.
Hydroxychloroquine can still be used in clinical trials in the state.
The FDA has said the drug, which is typically used to treat malaria, lupus and rheumatoid arthritis, can cause serious cardiac side effects and multiple studies have shown it has no benefit for COVID-19 patients. The agency revoked emergency authorization for it in June.
A spokesperson for Ohio's pharmacy board told the Dispatch the board decided to ban hydroxychloroquine for COVID-19 treatment because it is a patient safety issue.
"The long and short of it is, we want people to focus on what works, such as social distancing and mask use," the spokesperson said. "We ultimately want to make sure people are being safe and not exposing themselves to drugs that have shown not to be effective in treating COVID-19."
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