A short excerpt from the very long Wilkinson v. Wash. Med. Comm'n, decided today by Washington Court of Appeals Judge George Fearing, joined by Chief Judge Robert Lawrence-Berrey and Judge Tracy Staab; it strikes me as generally correct:
Dr. Richard Wilkinson challenges discipline imposed on him by the Washington Medical Commission … related to his treatment of seven patients with COVID-19 and related to his clinic website's blogs downplaying the severity of the COVID pandemic, promoting the use of ivermectin over a vaccine, and criticizing the government's response to the pandemic…. We affirm the patient care discipline and reverse the blog sanctions. WMC's discipline of Dr. Wilkinson for his website blogs breached his First Amendment free speech rights….
The First Amendment confirms that the government lacks power to restrict expression because of its message, its ideas, its subject matter, or its content. As a result, we presume content-based restrictions on speech invalid….. Critical to this appeal is the extension of First Amendment protection to false statements. U.S. v. Alvarez (2012). This protection is essential because some false statements are inevitable with an open and vigorous expression of views in public and private conversation, expressions the First Amendment seeks to guarantee. New York Times Co. v. Sullivan (1964)….
WMC suggests that speech by doctors must be consensus driven. It cites no authority for this position. The law, to the contrary, defeats this position. The First Amendment robustly protects a doctor who publicly advocates a treatment that the medical establishment considers outside the mainstream or even dangerous.
WMC's contention that it may monitor the scientific accuracy of physician's speech means that the State of Washington holds power to monitor speech and assess the trustworthiness of that speech. A government's power to protect truthful discourse would cast a chill on the exercise of free speech and thought. Alvarez.
According to Dr. Richard Wilkinson, WMC's finding that his statements were false supports Wilkinson's position. It shows punishment based on viewpoint discrimination. We agree. The First Amendment reserves to the people the right to assess truth. The state has no right to protect the public against false doctrine.
