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A county judge in Ohio has ordered a hospital in Cincinnati to administer ivermectin to an intensive care patient, a move raises questions about the role of the courts in the medical system.

“It is absurd that this order was issued,” Arthur Caplan , professor of bioethics at New York University’s Langone Medical Center, told Ars. “If I were these doctors, I simply wouldn’t do it.”

The order was spurred by a lawsuit filed by Julie Smith, whose 51-year-old husband, Jeffrey, is being treated in West Chester Hospital for COVID-19. The lawsuit was first reported by the Ohio Capital Journal . Jeffrey has been in the hospital since July 15, and as his condition declined, his wife Julie began investigating alternative treatments.

Enlarge / tablets of Ivermectin drugs in Tehatta, West Benga, India on 19 May on 2021. (credit: Getty | Nurphoto )

Amid the current delta-fueled wave of COVID-19, officials have noted a dangerous surge in the misuse of a deworming drug routinely used in livestock. The result is an uptick in calls to poison control centers, empty shelves in farming supply stores, and pleas from regulators.

In an attention-grabbing tweet over the weekend, the Food and Drug Administration wrote bluntly: "You are not a horse. You are not a cow. Seriously, y'all. Stop it."

The agency stressed that the drug, ivermectin, is not FDA-approved to treat or prevent COVID-19 and, so far, there is no evidence that it does either of those things. However, it can cause serious side effects and overdoses, which can be life-threatening, the agency warned. Overdoses can result in nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, hypotension (low blood pressure), allergic reactions (itching and hives), dizziness, ataxia (problems with balance), seizures, coma, and even death.