State: Doctors accused of COVID misinformation will be investigated

The state Department of Public Health will investigate physicians accused of spreading misinformation about COVID-19 and the vaccines designed to combat the virus, if a complaint were to be filed, officials said.

DPH spokesman Christopher Boyle said that if the agency were to receive a complaint that a physician was spreading COVID-19 vaccine misinformation, the Practitioner Investigation Unit would investigate.

In July, the Federation of State Medical Boards warned physicians that they could face disciplinary action by a state medical board for spreading disinformation about COVID-19 vaccines.

DPH said that there is no mechanism for monitoring social media or other forms of media for doctors who are spreading misinformation. By state law, the public has no way of knowing whether a physician is under investigation until a resolution to the complaint comes before the state Medical Examining Board — months, or possibly years, from the filing of the complaint.

Joe Knickrehm, a spokesman for the Federation of State Medical Boards, said a lack of funding and personnel required to spot physicians who may be operating outside medical standards during the pandemic is a problem occurring across the country.

“State and territorial medical boards in the U.S. operate largely on a system that is complaint-driven,” Knickrehm said. “Medical boards rely upon patients, members of the public, physician peers and other entities (such as hospitals and health systems) to report serious instances of misconduct to them. Boards often do not have the resources to actively monitor social media or traditional media for physicians spreading misinformation or disinformation and therefore rely on information they receive through formal complaints.”

But that hasn’t stopped medical boards in several states from disciplining physicians for distributing misinformation about COVID-19 to patients and the public, Knickrehm said.

“We know a number of boards have taken disciplinary actions, and we have heard anecdotally from member boards that they are seeing an uptick in complaints about physicians generating or spreading COVID-19 misinformation and disinformation, and in some instances are carrying out investigations as a result,” he said. California and Oregon are among the states that have taken action.

Misinformation about vaccines became so acute this summer during efforts to vaccinate as many people as possible that U.S. Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy issued a 22-page advisory July 15 calling attention to the issue and outlining an action plan for consumers and others.

“Health misinformation is an urgent threat to public health,” Murthy said. “It can cause confusion, sow mistrust, and undermine public health efforts, including our ongoing work to end the COVID-19 pandemic. As Surgeon General, my job is to help people stay safe and healthy, and without limiting the spread of health misinformation, American lives are at risk.”

Murthy encouraged tech and social media companies to identify and avoid sharing vaccine misinformation on their platforms, calling their cooperation “critical to the long-term health of our nation.” He also asked physicians to talk with patients about their understanding of the pandemic and the vaccines and correct any misconceptions.

Two weeks after Murthy’s report was published, the federation issued a warning to physicians that they could be disciplined, including losing their license, if a med board were to determine they were spreading misinformation on COVID-19.

“Due to their specialized knowledge and training, licensed physicians possess a high degree of public trust and therefore have a powerful platform in society, whether they recognize it or not,” the statement issued July 29 said.