Backlash in Montana and Idaho following hospitals' refusal to treat patients with unproven drugs have shed light on the growing pressure healthcare workers face to use unauthorized treatments, Kaiser Health News reported Dec. 2.
Three examples:
- On Nov. 17, Community Medical Center in Missoula, Mont., was placed on lockdown and police were called after a woman reportedly threatened violence because the hospital refused to treat her family member with ivermectin, according to Missoula police Lt. Eddie McLean.
- In September, Ashley Carvalho, MD, described in an op-ed in the Idaho Capital Sun how a patient's relative verbally abused her — as well as threatened her with physical violence and a lawsuit — after she refused to treat the patient with ivermectin or hydroxychloroquine.
- After an 82-year-old woman was admitted to Helena, Mont.-based St. Peter's Health in October, a family friend contacted Chief Deputy Attorney General Kris Hansen with complaints about her treatment, including the hospital's refusal to treat her with ivermectin or hydroxychloroquine. The complaint led to involvement from Attorney General Austin Knudsen, who messaged a lobbyist for the Montana Hospital Association who is also on the hospital's board of directors. Public Service Commissioner Jennifer Fielder also left the hospital a voicemail saying the patient’s friends in the Senate would not be pleased to learn how the hospital was treating the patient, according to Kaiser Health News.