PA Reprimanded for Secretly Pushing Ivermectin

A physician assistant in Minnesota has been reprimanded for secretly pushing ivermectin as a treatment for COVID-19.

From November 2021 through February 2023, the Minnesota Board of Medical Practice received three reports about Matthew Trom, PA-C, and his “prescription practice with ivermectin for the treatment of COVID-19,” according to board documents.

After an investigation, the board found that Trom prescribed ivermectin to patients with mild-to-moderate COVID and did not document those prescriptions “because of what he saw as an intense controversy surrounding ivermectin as a treatment for COVID-19,” according to the document. Trom viewed his actions at the time as “reasonable and within the standard of care.”

Ivermectin has proven time and time again to be an ineffective treatment for COVID. While some doctors have been punished for prescribing unproven off-label usages for drugs like ivermectin or hydroxychloroquine, it’s been rare for PAs to get caught doing the same.

Meryl Nass, MD, a physician based in Maine, had her license suspended in January 2022 for reportedly spreading misinformation about COVID online, refusing to comply with masking and vaccine guidelines, and incorrectly diagnosing patients with Lyme disease to prescribe hydroxychloroquine. Nass sued the Maine medical board and filed a legal complaint this August, citing freedom of speech.

The Minnesota Board of Medical Practice has previously disciplined multiple doctors for prescribing ivermectin and other unproven treatments, according to the Star Tribune.

Before Trom can petition for an unconditional license, he must complete several tasks, including reviewing CDC and UpToDate guidelines for healthcare professionals about treatment and management of COVID; coursework on topics like professional boundaries, medical ethics, medical records management, and interpreting and evaluating medical research; and writing a paper describing what he learned and how he’ll implement it for complaint review committee approval. Trom signed these conditions on November 9, and the committee signed 9 days later. It was released to the public last week.

Elizabeth Huntley, executive director of the Minnesota Board of Medical Practice, told MedPage Today in an email that Trom’s PA license is conditioned but active. She also noted that “the vast majority of licensees” are eventually granted an Order of Unconditional License once they comply with the board’s terms.

Trom has been licensed in both Minnesota and Wisconsin since 2010; both licenses are set to expire in 2024, according to the Minnesota Board and the Wisconsin Department of Safety and Professional Services.

John Beard, communications director for the latter, told MedPage Today that people with PA licenses in both Wisconsin and a second state are required to self-report if they are disciplined in the other state — and Trom reported himself last week. Complaints are not publicly visible, but discipline is, he said.

Beard also said if Wisconsin moves forward with an action, Trom would have to complete similar tasks to the ones in Minnesota.

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