California lawmakers have sent Governor Newsom a first-of-its-kind bill that would allow the state’s medical boards to revoke or suspend a doctor’s medical license if they’re caught giving patients false information about COVID vaccines and treatments. The governor has until next month to make a decision on the bill.
“This is only a very select few of licensed doctors who are knowingly harming patients around the standards of care. And what's important is that we have the mechanisms to address this fundamentally. But unfortunately, they are very loud. And with so much misinformation going on, we want to be able to protect patients,” says California Assemblymember Evan Low, a Democrat from Silicon Valley.
He adds, “There are a number of things to focus on with respect to misinformation. Certainly without the safeguards on social media is one. But again, with … the trusted source of a licensed doctor, that is what the conversation is currently on: a very narrow scope to, frankly, help ensure that doctors are doing what we expect them to do. And so we need to make sure that we have these protections in place.”