Disciplinary Action Against Dr. Sears Roils Fiery Battle Over Vaccinations
Opponents of required vaccinations fear the Medical Board's decision to pull the prominent physician's license will spark a witch hunt.
Los Angeles Times:
Accusation Against Prominent Vaccine Skeptic Sparks New Battle Over Immunizations
Dr. Robert Sears is one of the leading voices in the anti-vaccination world, a hero to parents suspicious of childhood immunizations that public health officials say are crucial to preventing disease outbreaks. So when the Medical Board of California announced last week that it was moving to pull the Orange County pediatrician’s medical license, it immediately set the stage for a new battle in the long-running fight over whether schoolchildren should be vaccinated. At the heart of the case is whether Sears used sound medical practices when he wrote a doctor’s note for a 2-year-old boy, saying he should have “no more routine childhood vaccines for the duration of his childhood.” (Lin II, Karlamangla and Xia, 9/12)
KPCC:
Experts Say Dr. Sears Offers Bad Advice On Vaccine Exemptions
The state medical board is accusing prominent Orange County pediatrician Dr. Bob Sears of "gross negligence" for improperly excusing a 2-year-old child from immunizations in 2014. Meanwhile, experts say Sears has also been publicly peddling false medical reasons that supposedly would exempt children from vaccinations. In July 2015, following the signing of California’s new vaccination law, Sears -- who was a vocal opponent of the measure as it moved through the legislature -- advised his nearly 62,000 Facebook followers on how they might get a medical exemption from vaccines. (Plevin, 9/9)