California Gov. Gavin Newsom signed a bill into law on Sept. 30 that allows the state medical board to discipline physicians for “misinformation” or “disinformation” related to COVID-19.
According to the law, misinformation means “false information that is contradicted by contemporary scientific consensus contrary to the standard of care,” while disinformation is “misinformation that the licensee deliberately disseminated with malicious intent or an intent to mislead.”
Newsom gave his reasoning for signing the bill, AB2098, which was introduced by Democratic Assembly Member Evan Low.
“I am signing this bill because it is narrowly tailored to apply only to those egregious instances in which a licensee is acting with malicious intent or clearly deviating from the required standard of care while interacting directly with a patient under their care,” Newsom wrote in his signing message….