A health worker shows a box containing a bottle of Ivermectin, a medicine authorized by the National Institute for Food and Drug Surveillance (INVIMA) to treat patients with mild, asymptomatic or suspicious COVID-19, as part of a study of the Center for Paediatric Infectious Diseases Studies, in Cali, Colombia, on July 21, 2020. (Photo by Luis ROBAYO / AFP) (Photo by LUIS ROBAYO/AFP via Getty Images)
LUIS ROBAYO
AFP via Getty Images
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton is backing a Houston doctor who was reprimanded for prescribing ivermectin to a COVID-19 patient at a Fort Worth hospital in 2021.
Paxton pledged his support to Dr. Mary Talley Bowden in her years-long dispute with the Texas Medical Board, which reprimanded her on Oct. 17. The board, which is responsible for licensing Texas doctors, accused Bowden of unprofessional conduct when she prescribed ivermectin to a man at Texas Health Huguley Hospital.
The drug has become a rallying point for physicians and activists aligned with the Make America Healthy Again movement. Last year, ivermectin was made available over-the-counter in Texas. The drug is best known for treating river blindness in humans.
“I will not stand by as Dr. Bowden has her Constitutional rights trampled and ability to serve her patients impeded with an illegal reprimand,” Paxton said in a statement. “Dr. Bowden has been a champion for health freedom, selflessly served her patients, and acted in full accordance with the law.”
Neither Bowden nor the Texas Medical Board responded immediately to requests for comment Thursday morning.
The dispute stems from the treatment of a Tarrant County sheriff’s deputy, Jason Jones, who was hospitalized with COVID-19 in 2021 at Texas Health Huguley. Jones was placed on a ventilator in the ICU in a medically induced coma, according to court records. His wife sued the hospital in an attempt to allow Bowden to treat Jones with ivermectin.
A court initially sided with Jones’ wife and ordered Texas Health Huguley to give Bowden privileges to be able to treat Jones at the hospital. The hospital appealed. An appeals court paused the ruling but directed the hospital to allow Bowden to apply for privileges. The hospital then asked Bowden to apply for privileges. Bowden replied that she was sending a nurse to administer the ivermectin, according to the State Office of Administrative Hearings’ proposal for decision.
Bowden said she was not aware that the ruling was stayed.
After Bowden’s nurse arrived, hospital staff ultimately called Fort Worth police.
Jones died in April 2023. His cause of death was not disclosed in his obituary.
Bowden was disciplined by the Texas Medical Board in October. She is now suing the medical board. Paxton is declining to represent the medical board in Bowden’s lawsuit, and has filed an intervention in the case to support Bowden.
Although some initial research showed that ivermectin could stop cell cultures in a petri dish from getting infected with the coronavirus, the drug is not effective at treating the virus in humans, the Star-Telegram previously reported. The World Health Organization, the American Medical Association, and the Infectious Diseases Society of America have published statements recommending against the use of ivermectin to treat COVID-19 outside of a clinical trial. Merck, a drug company that manufactures ivermectin, has also cautioned against using it for COVID-19 patients.
This story was originally published February 12, 2026 at 11:43 AM.
Related Stories from Fort Worth Star-Telegram
Fort Worth Star-Telegram
Ciara McCarthy covers health and wellness as part of the Star-Telegram’s Crossroads Lab. She came to Fort Worth after three years in Victoria, Texas, where she worked at the Victoria Advocate. Ciara is focused on equipping people and communities with information they need to make decisions about their lives and well-being. Please reach out with your questions about public health or the health care system. Email cmccarthy@star-telegram.com or call or text 817-203-4391.