Commentary
Microaggression mayhem: Oregon’s proposed microaggression rule could cost doctors their medical licenses
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What does the term “unprofessional conduct” bring to mind? Fraud? Sexual harassment? Actions that put others in danger?
All of these could be considered misconduct, both within and outside of the medical community.
But the Oregon Medical Board is seeking to elevate one more category of behavior to the same level of severity as these offenses, warranting the same levels of mitigation and intervention: microaggressions.
According to a new rule proposed by the Oregon Medical Board, doctors that engage in “unfair treatment characterized by implicit and explicit bias, including microaggressions,” could have their medical license revoked.
Even worse, doctors who simply fail to report supposed “microaggressions” within ten business days could face the same penalty.
The Board’s proposed rule was formally filed back in April, with the public comment period closing the following month. Now, the Board could permanently adopt this rule as soon as July 11th.
If passed, Oregon’s new microaggression crackdown would not only stifle free speech, but also severely hamper physicians’ ability to be candid in the delivery of medical diagnoses or care. As Do No Harm Founder and Board Chair Dr. Stanley Goldfarb noted, “Physicians need to be able to speak frankly and honestly with their patients…If they believe that they can be sanctioned because they deliver bad news or make a comment that the patient misinterprets, this will lead to a chilling effect on speech and ultimately lead to deterioration in the patient-physician relationship.”
Unfortunately, that doesn’t appear to stop the Oregon Medical Board’s intent towards pursuing this radical proposal. In fact, according to the Washington Free Beacon, the proposed rule is drawn from a commitment contained in the 2023 “DEI Action Plan” from the Board. Interestingly, all links to the DEI Action Plan on the Board’s website are no longer functional. Nor is there any obvious posting of any public comments received relating to the proposed rule.
While the Board focuses its energies on the entirely manufactured crisis of microaggressions, it is apparently turning a blind eye towards the real cases of legitimate unprofessional medical conduct that are occurring in Oregon.
For example, a local Portland news station published an investigative documentary that examined cases where “doctors were allowed to continue practicing medicine even after being credibly accused of serious misconduct, including sexual abuse or gross negligence leading to the death of a patient.” According to the investigative piece, some of the most egregious violations of medical trust occurred after the Oregon Medical Board endorsed the continued licensure of problematic doctors.
Yet instead of treating the investigative report as an opportunity to reflect on these concerning practices, the Board sued the news station over the disclosure of public records.
So, according to the Oregon Medical Board, microaggressions are to be treated with the highest level of severity, while blatant medical malpractice is of such little concern that the records should be shielded from the public’s view with litigation, if necessary.
Unfortunately, this is the perverse line of logic that the woke takeover of modern medicine has facilitated: legitimate issues are pushed aside to make room for more rules and restrictions to appease the fringe pro-DEI crowd.
It is unknown what the true adverse impact of this rule will be, if passed. However, it is entirely possible that highly skilled medical providers will simply be unable to tolerate such an intrusion into their free speech and the doctor-patient relationship. As a result, it will be unsurprising if these doctors look to states that allow them to practice with the candor that their profession requires.
At the July 11th meeting, the Oregon Medical Board will be faced with a simple decision: either uphold the freedom that doctors need in order to practice effectively, or permit the entire medical establishment in Oregon to be completely overtaken by the wishes of woke radicals. The choice could not be clearer.