Date: December 31, 2021

Is Pfizer making a new drug called PfizerMectin that is a “copy of Ivermectin”?

Lead Fact Checker: Ibrahim Jouhari

Feedback Contact: info@arabmediafactcheck.org

Fact Check Assessment: False

On December 31, 2021, Shaun Snapp published an article on brightworkresearch.com - widely circulated by Arabic social media accounts - claiming that Pfizer is making a new drug called PfizerMectin which is a “copy of Ivermectin”. The article itself was partially based on an Arabic language tweet published on September 26, 2021 that claimed Pfizer was introducing a new drug to fight COVID called PfizerMectin [see our previous Fact Check of this claim from September 26]. A video was attached to the tweet allegedly proving the claim.

The video, however, originated from the Babylon Bee satirical YouTube channel which is dedicated to posting parodies, including on COVID, like this and this.

Unfortunately, the video was disseminated by some users and media sites as a serious advertisement for the “new treatment.” A search of Pfizer’s website, of course, did not find any mention of it, although Pfizer is working on a new anti-COVID drug, called PAXLOVID™ which is a SARS-CoV-2 protease inhibitor antiviral therapy, “specifically designed to be administered orally so that it can be prescribed at the first sign of infection or at first awareness of an exposure, potentially helping patients avoid severe illness which can lead to hospitalization and death.”