A California law that threatens to punish doctors who disseminate COVID-19 "misinformation" is gratuitous and unconstitutional, two chapters of the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) argue in a brief they filed in federal court last week. The ACLU of Northern California and the ACLU of Southern California say decisions by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit, which includes California, make it clear that the law, A.B. 2098, is inconsistent with the First Amendment.
"Under the Ninth Circuit's well-established framework for evaluating regulations of healthcare professionals, AB 2098 sweeps in exactly the kind of protected speech physicians rely on in their doctor-patient relationships," the brief says. "AB 2098 is a content-based regulation encompassing speech protected by the First Amendment. Strict scrutiny therefore applies." The ACLU adds that the state has not come close to meeting that test.
