The oral antivirus drug Avigan was prescribed in August and September to about 90 COVID-19 patients recuperating at home, a violation of health ministry policy, The Yomiuri Shimbun has learned.
The doctor responsible was an advisor for novel coronavirus measures at the Isumi Medical Center, a public hospital in Isumi, Chiba Prefecture. The health ministry on Nov. 25 instructed the center to report on the situation, saying it was "regrettable, as the drug requires strict control measures."
No serious health problems have been reported so far.
Avigan has been approved for stockpiling to treat new strains of influenza, but not for COVID-19 treatment. Clinical trials have been conducted as part of efforts to gain approval for its use related to COVID-19, and the drug has been administered to over 15,000 people domestically.
However, the Health, Labor and Welfare Ministry has put out a notice that Avigan should not be administered to patients staying at home, as animal experiments indicated the possibility of fetal deformities.
The 72-year-old male doctor who prescribed the Avigan announced in September, together with Isumi Mayor Hiroshi Ota, the use of an unnamed drug on COVID-19 outpatients to prevent them from developing serious symptoms.
"As a result of [the drug's] prescription, all the patients recovered," the doctor and the mayor said.
According to sources, the doctor has been involved in community healthcare in Chiba Prefecture for many years and was commissioned as an advisor last year. He made plans to use Avigan in case the medical system came under strain.
The doctor applied to the health ministry to participate in clinical trials and procured Avigan. He gave the drug to COVID-19 patients who had come to the hospital by car through their vehicle windows, and had them take it at home.
The Yomiuri Shimbun spoke to the doctor by phone Sunday, and he said he had resigned from the advisory post at the end of November. He "couldn't talk" about Avigan, he said.
"I appreciate the fact that he treated COVID-19 patients proactively, as there are many doctors who are unwilling to treat them," said Reiji Goto, a doctor at Aichi Medical University Hospital who has used Avigan for COVID-19. "But rather than using drugs based on personal beliefs and feelings, he should've proceeded in a way to ensure accountability."
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