CHICAGO – Given the dangerous spread of public health disinformation during the COVID-19 pandemic, physician, resident, and medical student members of the American Medical Association (AMA) House of Delegates adopted policy today aimed at combatting public health disinformation disseminated by health care professionals. While it was noted during the Special Interim Meeting that a small number of health professionals are using their professional license to validate the disinformation they are spreading, it has seriously undermined public health efforts. These individuals are harming the credibility of health professionals, including physicians, who are trusted sources of information for their patients and the public.
Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, some health care professionals have deliberately made false claims about COVID-19 vaccines and how the virus is transmitted, peddled untested treatments and cures, and flouted public health efforts such as masking and vaccinations—posing serious health risks to patients and significantly damaging vaccine confidence across the country. The new policy calls for the AMA to collaborate with relevant health professional societies and other stakeholders to combat public health disinformation disseminated by health professionals in all forms of media and address disinformation that undermines public health initiatives.
Under the new policy, the AMA will also study disinformation disseminated by health professionals and its impact on...
Every couple of years, the same false stories come back. A claim that an election was rigged before a single vote was cast. An old video of violence, stripped of its date and place, presented as b...