Major medical freedom case heats up in Supreme Court
Medical organizations last week filed amicus briefs in support of Dr. Paul Thomas in Thomas v. Harder, a medical freedom case unfolding in the US Supreme Court that may set a major precedent for medical freedom.
Outrage over an alternative vaccine schedule
Over 30 years, Dr. Paul Thomas built a medical practice in Oregon that served thousands of pediatric patients with no complaints. In 2016, he co-wrote a book called “The Vaccine-Friendly Plan: Dr. Paul's Safe and Effective Approach to Immunity and Health—from Pregnancy Through Your Child's Teen Years.” The book, which educates parents about childhood health, immunity, and vaccines, advocates for an alternative and slower vaccine schedule than the one recommended by the CDC. It soon climbed to #1 on Amazon’s best-seller list in the vaccinations category.
The book drew outrage from adherents of vaccine ideology, with CNN calling on Amazon to ban the book. In 2019, the Oregon Medical Board (OMB) demanded Dr. Thomas justify his approach to vaccination, and he responded by publishing a peer-reviewed study. The study looked at every patient born in his practice, roughly 3,700 of whom had received vaccinations and over 500 who had received none. By tracking the office visits of those children over 10 years, Dr. Thomas discovered the vaccinated children generally weren’t getting sick, but illnesses and chronic conditions was widespread among vaccinated kids. Children who had received even some shots returned to the office with anemia, eczema, behavioral issues, eye disorders, ADHD, infections, and allergies.
An illegal mandate
Within five days of the study’s publication, the OMB called an emergency meeting where they decided to revoke Dr. Thomas’ license for being a “threat to public health” and an “immediate danger to the public.” To justify their decision, they created a rule requiring physicians to encourage their patients to vaccinate. The rule violates Oregon state laws that prohibit the state from interfering in an individual’s medical decisions and affirm the right of parents to refuse to vaccinate their children.
The revocation of Dr. Thomas’ license in Oregon also led to him losing his licenses in Washington and Hawaii, along with his practice and eventually even his marriage as he dealt with the repercussions. This witch hunt was so abusive and malicious that it became the subject of a book called “The War on Informed Consent: The Persecution of Dr. Paul Thomas by the Oregon Medical Board,” written by Jeremy Hammond with a foreword by current HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr.
Dr. Thomas sued the OMB for damages but the US Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled in favor of the medical board, which is claiming that its members are protected by absolute immunity. The case now sits before the US Supreme Court, where medical organizations like the National Health Federation and America’s Frontline Doctors (AFLDS) have filed amicus curiae briefs supporting Dr. Thomas.
“America’s Frontline Doctors contends that the Respondents should not be allowed to escape accountability for their alleged intentional and malicious behavior behind a shield of unwarranted ‘absolute immunity,’” the organization said in a press release. “Even judges are denied absolute judicial immunity in cases where they are alleged to have engaged in such acts. Further, the Oregon Medical Board’s enforcement of its unwritten vaccine ideology upon independent doctors is contrary to well-established Oregon state law and the constitutional right to refuse medical treatment. These violations disqualify the Respondents from automatic blanket immunity.”
Medical boards out of control
AFLDS Founder and President Dr. Simone Gold noted that, like Dr. Thomas, she was also targeted by a medical board. In 2021, the California Medical Board (CMB) placed Dr. Gold under six investigations after she recommended ivermectin and hydroxychloroquine as early treatments for COVID-19. At her three-day hearing, however, the CMB made no mention of her medical recommendations. Instead, the board repeatedly interrogated her about her political beliefs and her presence at the Capitol on January 6th.
“Like Dr. Thomas, I experienced firsthand the usurpation of a weaponized medical board,” said Dr. Gold in a statement. “This is the usurpation that George Washington warned us about. The tyranny inflicted upon Dr. Thomas has no place in our country. Allowing the Oregon Medical Board to escape accountability for their crimes against Dr. Thomas would set a dangerous precedent. If not stopped, future violations are likely to recur. The courts must hold these bad actors accountable.”
The CMB had tried to revoke Dr. Gold’s license for her activities on January 6th, but an Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) ruled that the maximum disciplinary action the board could take was to reprimand her and force her to take a medical ethics course. The board did so, but an appellate judge last month vacated the reprimand and ordered the CMB to reimburse Dr. Gold for her legal fees. Dr. Gold is suing the CMB for damages in federal court.
