First Lawsuit Drops Against California’s Doctor-Muzzling, Anti-Free Speech Bill AB 2098

You knew this would be challenged when California Governor Gavin Newsom signed AB 2098. This effectively told the state’s physicians that they should self-censor any opinions about COVID. The bill is in violation of the First Amendment to the Constitution. A 7th grader could easily tell you this.

Congress may not pass any law that would allow the establishment or prohibition of religion or the abridging of freedom of speech or press; or the right to peaceful assembly and petition the Government to address grievances.

AB 2098 states that we don’t care and will punish you regardless of what you say. The bill says:

The Federation of State Medical Boards issued a statement warning doctors that they could lose their medical licenses if they disseminate COVID-19 vaccine information or disinformation. Physicians have a responsibility to give accurate and scientifically-based information to their patients.

Mark McDonald MD, a Los Angeles psychiatrist, is the author of Freedom from Fear: a 12-Step Guide for Personal and National Recovery and the United States of Fear. He also wrote about How America fell victim to a mass delusional psychosis. These books’ titles will probably reveal his outlook. To challenge the measure, he joined forces with Jeff Barke, an Orange County primary care physician.

In conjunction with Liberty Justice Center, I filed a federal lawsuit against California Medical Board (CMB). This challenged Assembly Bill 2098, the medical misinformation law that California Governor Gavin Newsom signed late on Friday night to avoid being noticed by the media. It will be the law on January 1, 2023. This effectively denies all California physicians the right to publically share their medical opinions under threat of losing their licenses to practice medicine. [Emphasis mine.]

McDonald’s continues to explain the severe consequences of the bill if it isn’t struck down by the courts.

If AB 2098 becomes law, any California physician who challenges the validity of mask mandates, denials of prophylactic and early treatment, efficacy and safety of mRNA therapies, or opposes them will be subject to suspension or termination of their license. Ethical doctors who insist on the validity of treatment protocols, as well as those who oppose harmful, anti-scientific, and abusive public policies or medical treatments, will be expelled from California or retired early.

McDonald’s and Barke are not the only doctors who are furious at the censorious laws. Jennifer O’Connell, RedState’s Jennifer O’Connell, wrote that Jay Bhattacharya (an epidemiologist and professor who coauthored the Great Barrington Declaration) is also deeply troubled. He stated that the bill is a chilling interference in medical practice. “The bill is filled with misinformation and a demonstration about how disastrous it would be for the legislature to dictate the practice or medicine.”

Will doctors have to endorse safety measures such as the arrest of the Malibu paddleboarder who was swimming in the ocean several hundred yards from anyone if another pandemic occurs? Doctors will be expected to support idiotic decisions like sanding a skatepark so that no one can use it. They will have to recommend booster after booster after booster, even if they are concerned about the adverse effects on their health.

Is there a better way to stop medical breakthroughs than to muzzle doctors who are constantly innovating? Progress will cease if every doctor has the same opinion. Jonas Salk is known for creating the polio vaccine. If he was alive today and still working in California, it would likely be because he thinks outside of the box.

McDonald’s sums it all up well:

The United States Constitution clearly says that the government cannot make laws that restrict freedom of speech. AB 2098 is a clear example of this. It prohibits doctors from speaking. It is illegal, unethical, and harmful to both patients and doctors. It should be rejected.