What prompted Merck’s sudden safety concerns? Merck’s exclusive ivermectin patent rights expired in 1996,73 and dozens of generic drug companies now produce IVM, for about 40¢/dose, badly diminishing ivermectin’s profit profile for Merck. Furthermore, only ten days before Merck discovered its concerns about IVM, Merck signed a manufacturing partnership for the Novavax and Emergent BioSolutions COVID vaccine as it moved into final trials.
