Oregon physician Dr. Steve LaTulippe is facing the harrowing consequences of exercising his First Amendment rights after the Oregon Medical Board suspends his medical license after he attended a campaign rally in support of President Donald Trump.
The board voted to suspend LaTulippe's license in early December "due to the board’s concern for the safety and welfare of licensee’s current and future patients" amid the COVID-19 pandemic. LaTulippe, a staunch critic of the government's pandemic response, discourages the use of face masks.
But LaTulippe said during an interview with PJ Media that the board had been aware of his alternative safety protocols since July. Yet it had only shut down his practice after a video of him delivering a speech during a "Stop the Steal" rally on Nov. 7 went viral.
"I was not only censored, but I had my livelihood taken away from me because of attending a Trump rally," LaTulippe said.
Doctor observes mask-free safety precautions
LaTulippe, a family physician in Dallas specializing in opioid-free pain management, has been practicing family medicine in his small-town clinic for over 20 years. He had, according to LaTulippe, a spotless record with the Oregon Medical Board until the suspension.
In his speech, LaTulippe said that he wanted to debunk "COVID mania" and described the response to the pandemic as "insanity." He said that he never shuttered his practice and he and his staff do not wear a mask in his clinic.
"Take off the mask of shame, it is designed to control you and shut you down," LaTulippe said.
LaTulippe stated in his interview that he practiced his usual flu and cold season protocols and had no problem with infectivity. He said: "None of my staff or I became sick. None of my patients became sick."
Though LaTulippe's clinic does not observe the usual precautions such as wearing a mask, it has its own way of preventing the spread of the virus. For instance, he would have his staff schedule patients with COVID-19 symptoms for the end of the day to avoid infecting other patients. The staff also thoroughly disinfect the clinic at the end of every day. With these measures, according to LaTulippe, not a case of COVID-19 transmission has been traced to his clinic.
"I have a perfect record as far as preventing the spread and co-infections in my office with viruses in general," LaTulippe said.
False accusations and unfair trial beleaguer doctor
LaTulippe's attorney, Mariah Gondeiro, questioned the process by which the board arrived at its decision and said that LaTulippe was not given due process to defend his case in front of the board.
The panel launched an investigation into LaTulippe and found that he advised a patient in July not to get tested for the coronavirus, wear a mask or self-isolate. But this is false and the board knew that LaTulippe runs a different safety protocol in his clinic, according to Gondeiro.
"I think this is political," Gondeiro said, noting that the panel had been holding the false accusation since July but withheld resorting to any action until the rally.
"So if this was really an emergency, they could have filed something five months ago. It was after he attended the Trump rally that they retaliated against him," Gondeiro stated. (Related: Big Tech COVID-19 censorship is endangering the population.)
The panel also denied LaTulippe with the opportunity to challenge the allegations as it deemed that "his actions were posing an imminent threat to the community," according to Gondeiro.
LaTulippe and Gondeiro plan to take the case to federal court and seek a temporary restraining order on the board's decision.
For more about unfair attempts to stifle pro-Trump support, visit Trump.news.
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