Panaji, May 10 (IANS): As Goa continues to top the country's Covid positivity rate chart, the state government on Monday cleared a new Covid treatment protocol which recommends all residents above the age of 18 to take five tablets of the ivermectin drug, in order to prevent the steep and sometimes fatal viral fever, which accompanies a Covid-19 infection.

Speaking to reporters here, Health Minister Vishwajit Rane, the ivermectin drug would be made available at all health centres in the state and should be taken by all residents, irrespective of whether they have Covid-19 symptoms or otherwise.

"We are giving this as a prophylaxis treatment, as a preventive. Ivermectin tablets will be given to all patients above 18 years at government health centres. The population needs to take the population. This will be made available," Rane said.

"Patients will be treated with ivermectin 12mg for a period of 5 days. Expert panels from the UK, Italy, Spain and Japan, found a large, statistically significant reduction in mortality, time to recovery and viral clearance in Covid-19 patients treated with ivermectin," the Health Minister also said, after a meeting with top health officials and Chief Minister Pramod Sawant.

Rane said that Goa would be the first state in the country to endorse the new Covid treatment protocol.

"However, this does not prevent Covid-19 infection, but helps in reducing the severity of the disease and at the same time one should not have a false sense of security and complacency but strictly take all the precautionary measures and follow laid SOPs," Rane also said.