Federal Council of Medicine says it will not change its opinion on autonomy to prescribe ‘Covid kit’

The federal adviser of the CFM (Federal Council of Medicine) Rosylane Nascimento das Mercês Rocha said that the body will not change the opinion on the autonomy of the doctor to prescribe the medicine he deems necessary against Covid-19.

According to her, doctors are free to prescribe the drugs in the “Covid kit” for the so-called early treatment, if they deem it necessary and with the patient’s consent. Medicines such as chloroquine and ivermectin, which are usually part of this list, have already proved ineffective against the disease.

The statement was given at a public hearing on Thursday (4) at the Financial Inspection and Control Committee, which took place in the Chamber of Deputies.

“About the medication being prescribed, if the patient agrees and he [médico] feels safe in making these prescriptions, he is also being protected by the opinion. The opinion does not recommend any type of prescription, neither chloroquine nor hydroxychloroquine or any other medication,” he said.

“What we need is to have more humility and wait for more studies. People who are against certain therapies only read contrary articles. Those who are in favor often only read articles that are favorable. Criticism, reasoning, the property of science does not exist, of truth. What we need is to be cautious, wait for studies, guide physicians and respect the autonomy of physicians and patients,” he continued.

Rocha stressed that only the regional councils of medicine and the Federal Council of Medicine can say what is ethical and what is not ethical, they are not groups of doctors.

The speech was a response to a statement by physician Ceuci de Lima Xavier Nunes, representative of the Brazilian Association of Female Doctors for Democracy, who harshly criticized the CFM’s position.

Nunes called the board’s decision not to change its position a “disservice” nearly two years after the Covid-19 pandemic began. For her, the physician’s autonomy has a limit, and the opinion induces the prescription of drugs that have been proven to be ineffective.

“I think that the CFM did a great disservice to Brazil and to doctors with that note, it caused perplexity, even. It is incredible that we have medical societies linked to the disease such as the Brazilian Society of Infectology, Brazilian Society of Pulmonology, Amib [Associação de Medicina Intensiva Brasileira], the Brazilian Society of Pediatrics taking a stand against the use of these medications and the CFM maintains the same note more than a year and a half later,” he said.

She recalled the last vote by Conitec (National Commission for the Incorporation of Technology in the SUS), saying that there is an alignment of the entity with the government and denial. Of the entities, the CFM was against the report that does not recommend the “Covid kit” for patients suspected or diagnosed with Covid-19, in outpatient treatment.

The CFM’s position was also criticized by deputy Jorge Solla (PT-BA), who commanded the public hearing. He even proposed a new hearing to discuss how far medical autonomy goes.

According to him, the hearing this Thursday (4) was convened after a speech by President Jair Bolsonaro (no party) at the UN (United Nations), in September.

At the time, the president said that the CFM recommendation would have served as a technical foundation for the adoption of “early treatment” as a public policy in the fight against the Covid-19 pandemic.

“Since the beginning of the pandemic, we have supported the physician’s autonomy in seeking early treatment, following the recommendation of our Federal Council of Medicine. I myself was one of those who underwent initial treatment,” stated the president at the time.

Rocha took the opportunity to say that he does not know the speech and context, and the council’s newsletters are aimed at doctors. Other professionals must not follow the regulations. “As far as I know, the president of the Republic is not a doctor,” he said.