Brian Kilmeade Suggests Unproven Anti-Parasite Drug Can Treat Coronavirus: ‘Sometimes, Drugs Work for Different Things’

Tucker Carlson was off Tuesday night, but viewers of Tucker Carlson Tonight were nevertheless treated to yet another segment touting the alleged benefits of ivermectin to treat Covid-19. The drug does have some uses for humans, though it is often indicated for animals such as livestock and pets.

Filling for Carlson, Brian Kilmeade, slammed mainstream media outlets for running with a false story about how people overdosing on ivermectin had been overwhelming hospitals in rural Oklahoma, thus jeopardizing the quality of care patients were receiving. The “story” was first reported by KFOR in Oklahoma City, which cited the claims of a doctor who had been affiliated with the hospital system in question, though he had not worked there in more than two months.

As Mediaite reported, several news outlets ran with the story, including Rolling Stone, Insider, Newsweek, The Guardian and The New York Daily News. MSNBC’s Rachel Maddow also relayed the erroneous report in a tweet on September 2 that she has not deleted as of this writing.

Kilmeade suggested that the mainstream media could also not be trusted to report on the alleged benefits of ivermectin to treat Covid-19. Ivermectin, an anti-parasite drug, has been held up by several right wing commentators as an effective treatment against the virus, despite the fact there is little evidence supporting this claim.

“Ivermectin by the way,” said Kilmeade, “however it turns out, whatever you decide to do, was awarded a Nobel Prize back in 2015. It combats river blindness and tropical maladies. Sometimes drugs work for different things. For some people, they chose to try it.”

Ivermectin did not win a Nobel Prize, though the scientists who worked with the drug did, having “revolutionized therapy for patients suffering from devastating parasitic diseases.”

However, the coronavirus is not a louse or a heart worm. It is a virus, and ivermectin is not an antiviral medication. As CNN’s Dr. Jonathan Reiner said of the drug, “It doesn’t work. I wish it worked. It would be great if it worked. You know, it’s an old drug. It’s a cheap drug. It would be fantastic if it worked. It doesn’t work. We know that.”

His opinion is held by a vast majority of the medical community.

Kilmeade’s guest Steve Krakauer said that the U.S. Centers for Disease Control is recommending Afghan refugees headed to the U.S. and elsewhere take ivermectin, but he added, “not for Covid.” Indeed, the drug is being recommended for parasitic worms, and not Covid-19.

Watch above via Fox News.