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U.S. Sen. Ron Johnson, R-Wisc., held a panel discussion with a group of doctors and other experts Monday on Capitol Hill, aptly titled “COVID-19: A Second Opinion.”
“A group of world-renowned doctors and medical experts provide a different perspective on the global pandemic response, the current state of knowledge of early and hospital treatment, vaccine efficacy and safety, what went right, what went wrong, what should be done now, and what needs to be addressed long term,” the event description reads.
Among the surprising revelations that came up at the event was a former California psychiatry professor who explained why doctors are extremely hesitant to write medical exemptions for masks and vaccines.
Given the outright censorship by Big Tech of ideas or opinions on COVID-19 that vary from the established state narrative, it’s understandable that Johnson’s 5-hour event got little airtime. Often accused by the liberal media of spreading misinformation in questioning the established science that seems to change frequently, the senator is not going draw a lot of press coverage unless it’s to engage in character assassination.
Dr. Aaron Kheriarty, who was fired as a UC Irvine professor for refusing to get the vaccine because he had natural immunity from contracting COVID-19, spoke about doctors in the state receiving a directive from the medical board “saying any physician in California who writes an inappropriate exemptions for masks or other Covid-related measures will have his medical license subjected to investigation and disciplinary action.”
“So, for a physician, just to help you understand, this kind of threat hanging over your head is worse than the threat of getting fired,” Kheriarty said, noting that if he gets fired from a health organization, he can always go to another organization or start a private practice.
Dr. Aaron Kheriarty explains why doctors are extremely hesitant to write mask and/or vaccine medical exemptions
Wow!!@akheriaty pic.twitter.com/kUzRW6VHNb
— Chief Nerd (@TheChiefNerd) January 24, 2022
“If I lose my medical license I cannot practice medicine,” he then stressed. “That’s how serious this is. The letter never defined what might constitute an appropriate or inappropriate mask [exemption]. So I have no idea if I write an [exemption] for a kid with a serious anxiety disorder worsened by wearing a mask is that going to subject my medical license to disciplinary action?”
“Physicians in California interpreted the phrase ‘other Covid-related measures’ to include vaccines, which had already been rolled out at that point,” Kheriarty continued. “It has become de facto impossible to get a medical exemption for a Covid vaccine in the state of California. No physician will write them, even when you have someone who has a contraindication listed.”
He then explained that he had a patient who saw a specialist who informed her that she should not get the vaccine because he believed it could worsen her underlying condition, yet when the woman asked the physician to wrote her an exemption that she would need at work he declined.
“The same physician that just told her not to take the vaccine, recommended against it, said, ‘No, I’m sorry, I can’t write you a medical exemption because I’m afraid I might lose my license,'” Kheriarty said.
He also spoke about a feeling of “looking over my shoulder” every time he wrote a prescription related to Covid-19, and said it’s “not good public health policy” to ignore folks who have had the virus and now have natural immunity.
Sen. Johnson, who is regularly censored on YouTube, commented on the “state of fear” that exists.
“Public health officials pursued a one-size-fits-all response that relied heavily on creating a state of fear to ensure compliance,” Johnson said. “They also kept moving the goalposts. For example, we went from a two-week shutdown to flatten the curve to zero Covid, from masks weren’t necessary to a single mask wasn’t adequate, from a vaccine that would prevent infection to a vaccine that would reduce the severity of the disease. And as goalposts were moving, different viewpoints were being crushed.”
A fellow at the Ethics and Public Policy Center, Kheriarty spoke over the weekend at the “Defeat the Mandates” rally organized by Robert F. Kennedy Jr., and warned about expanding state powers with no end in sight, according to The Federalist.
“We’re seeing the emergence of what I call a biosecurity surveillance regime. The welding of digital technologies, public health, and police power, are leading to unprecedented invasions on our privacy, and intrusive methods of control,” Kheriarty told the thousands gathered. “And keep in mind that this pretext of public health and public safety historically has been used to pave the way even for totalitarian regimes.”
Sen. Johnson’s full conference can be viewed here
Writers and editors can be contacted at [email protected] with feedback, tips, or corrections.
Tom Tillison grew up in Maryland before moving to Central Florida as a young teen. It is in the Sunshine State that he honed both his passion for politics and his writing skills. Tillison also contributes to BizPac Review.
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