Polk County commissioner advocates for right to try COVID drugs

Polk County Commissioner Neil Combee drafted a letter to DeSantis aimed, he said, at encouraging discussion about unproven COVID-19 treatments — like hydroxychloroquine, ivermectin and even Pepcid AC — and a patient’s right to try them.

• Combee admitted he’d personally taken several of the medications without issue, per WTSP.

What's happening: Hoping to win support for his "right to try" letter at a commission meeting Tuesday, Combee took aim at the media, Florida Agriculture Commissioner Nikki Fried, the FDA and major drug companies for what he called a conspiracy.

• "It’s just nothing but deception. And it’s driving me crazy," Combee said.

Worth noting: Ivermectin is an anti-parasitic that some claim treats COVID-19.

• Poison control centers have seen a surge in calls from people who are self-medicating with ivermectin, a 245% jump in exposure cases from July to August, per WUSF.

What's next: The letter gained the support of three other commissioners, per the Lake Wales News, but Combee withdrew it and said he'd bring it up again at another meeting.