The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) says it’s not working in tandem with the U.S. Postal Service to specifically target foreign shipments of ivermectin, despite two recent seizures of the drug.
On Oct. 4, 2021, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers working at the international mail facility at Chicago’s O'Hare International Airport seized a shipment of 41 fake COVID-19 vaccination cards, and another shipment that contained ivermectin tablets.
A second package from Mexico contained 32 more ivermectin tablets and 40 hydroxychloroquine pills.
“While x-raying a package from China, officers noticed some discrepancies. The package said it contained decorative beads, but when officers inspected the parcel, they found 1 bottle containing 100 tablets of Ivermectin,” the CBP said in an Oct. 5, 2021, statement.
“The FDA requested these items be seized for violating FDA regulations. The pills were turned over to the FDA Office of Criminal Investigation for further investigation. The shipments were headed to Atlanta and St. Louis Park, Minnesota, respectively.”
Shane Campbell, area port director for Chicago, said in the statement: “These shipments are concerning. These were seized in just one night and you have to wonder if this trend will continue.
“Our officers are ready and will stop this threat before it can reach the public.”
On Nov. 10, 2021, the FDA announced that it had intercepted 200 ivermectin tablets at JFK Airport in New York. The package had been sent through the mail by an undisclosed foreign source.
Meanwhile, the FDA said there’s been no shift in foreign drug enforcement policy.
“The detention(s) of ivermectin ... are not the result of a new practice or policy on ivermectin imports,” FDA press officer Audra Harrison told The Epoch Times in an email.
“FDA-regulated products—including drugs—are subject to refusal if, for example, they do not appear to meet FDA’s standards for safety, effectiveness, and quality. The FDA may refuse admission of entries of imported drugs if an entry appears to be contaminated with a harmful ingredient, is unapproved, is mislabeled with inaccurate information or missing important safety information, for instance.”
According to the FDA’s Nov. 10, 2021, notice of seizure, the New York shipment contained a total of 200 Iverheal-12 ivermectin tablets of 12 milligrams per tablet.
“The shipment may also contain other items not listed above. This notice does not constitute assurance the products involved comply with provisions of the Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act, Public Health Service Act, or other related acts, and does not preclude action should the products later be found violative,” the notice stated.
“Examination of the following articles has been made and FDA has determined that these articles are drugs that are not in compliance with the requirements of the law.
“Additionally, FDA has determined that each article is valued at $2500 or less. Because these drugs are not in compliance with the requirements of the law and are valued at $2500 or less, they are subject to refusal of admission into the United States and are subject to administrative destruction.”
Attorney Aaron Siri, managing partner of Siri & Glimstad in New York, which represents COVID-19 vaccine injury clients, said he received a copy of the FDA enforcement letter and posted it on Twitter to draw attention to the issue.
“The FDA is working with the post office to hold packages containing ivermectin. The FDA could better use its resources to, I don’t know, publicly release the docs submitted by Pfizer to license its mandated liability-free [vaccine] earlier than 75 years from now!” Siri wrote on Twitter on Dec. 12, 2021.
“I don’t know what they’re really doing,” Siri told The Epoch Times on Jan. 4. “They say they’re not doing this widespread. I’m sure that term is subjective. My point in the tweet was the FDA is always [complaining] they don’t have enough resources.”
John B. Mennell, supervisory public affairs specialist for the CBP in Arizona, said the agency is responsible for enforcing FDA policy regarding foreign shipments of potentially harmful, mislabeled, or contraband drugs entering the United States.
