Ivermectin Didn’t Save Japan From Covid-19
Why basic critical thinking is quite important when it comes to repurposed medications
In the seemingly endless online discussion about ivermectin, a repurposed anti-parasitic medication that is proposed as a treatment for Covid-19, people have started passionately arguing about Japan. At first, this may seem like something of a non-sequitur, because Japan, like many other nations, has never actually approved ivermectin as a Covid-19 treatment, but the claim has sprung up everywhere recently regardless. Youtubers with millions of followers, anti-vaccine organizations, and strange people on twitter are all agog with the idea that Japan halted their massive Covid-19 wave with nothing but ivermectin:
The basic idea seems simple, and on face value very persuasive — Japan was experiencing a massive wave of Covid-19. Then, on the 13th of August, the Tokyo Medical Association changed everything, getting everyone in Japan on to the miracle drug, and immediately afterwards cases dropped. Therefore, ivermectin saved Japan!
Except, pretty much all of that is very obvious nonsense. The whole story is a…
