Ohio House passes bill to protect off-label drugs

COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) – The Ohio House passed a bipartisan bill last month requiring pharmacies to fill prescriptions for off-label drugs.

In a 73-13 vote in late June, state representatives approved House Bill 73 to protect Ohio health care providers who prescribe drugs for off-label uses, a common practice when physicians deem a drug – regardless of its intended use – medically appropriate for their patient. 

“Ohio should be a place where both patients and health providers have access to life-saving treatments without fear of retribution,” Gross said. “Reducing these barriers to save lives are key to our strategy and to the future health of our state and its citizens.”

The bill, sponsored by Reps. Jennifer Gross (R-West Chester) and Mike Loychik (R-Bazetta), provides for the following:

• Allows physicians to prescribe off-label drugs
• Requires hospitals or inpatient facilities to dispense off-label drugs, including when patients aren’t tested for or exposed to a particular disease, illness or infection
• Grants immunity for dispensing or using an off-label drug
• Generally prohibits licensing boards from disciplining prescribers, pharmacists or hospitals for dispensing off-label drugs

Examples of off-label drugs include some physicians’ prescription of ivermectin to treat COVID-19, though it’s approved specifically by the FDA for parasitic worms and other skin conditions. Others use misoprostol – approved by the FDA for gastric ulcers – to assist in women’s miscarriage care or abortion services.

David Burke, executive director of the Ohio Pharmacist Association, testified against the bill in May, touching on its potential to exhaust the supply of drugs for those most in need. 

For instance, pharmacies witnessed a surge in requests for ivermectin to treat COVID-19 symptoms, despite warnings from the FDA, Burke said. That left less ivermectin for patients commonly approved for the drug – those with lupus and rheumatoid arthritis.

“Given the already strained supply chain of pharmaceutical production, I fear House Bill 73 would cause the exact opposite to which it intends,” Burke said.

HB 73 has yet to be considered by the Ohio Senate.