Florida Surgeon General Joe Ladapo pulled no punches when addressing the American Board of Family Medicine and their decision to revoke the certification of a Florida doctor for "Covid-19 misinformation."
"What they are doing is being a bully and they are punching down," Ladapo told The Floridian in an exclusive interview. Dr. John Littell, a board-certified physician, was stripped of his certification after 33 years of practicing medicine in central Florida.
In a letter to Littell, "Professional Specialist" Andrea D. Back wrote, "ABFM has determined that your Public Channels contain false, inaccurate and misleading statements constituting health misinformation and disinformation about COVID-19, the COVID-19 vaccine, and the effort of public health officials to address the COVID-19 pandemic through vaccination and other mitigation measures."
"They are behaving like bullies, " Ladapo told the Floridian. "I know Dr. Littell. He is a very kind man. He has cared for patients for decades."
In February, Littell was removed by police from a meeting of the Sarasota Memorial Hospital board after speaking on the effectiveness of Ivermectin to treat Covid-19. Littell approached a board member to thank her and was surrounded by officers and taken out of the building.
Ladapo says he has read the letter from the ABFM published exclusively on the Floridian.
"I read the letter from the American Board of Family Medicine and it's dripping with political animosity," said Ladapo. According to Ladapo, it is the ABFM who is guilty of misinformation. "There are even some statements in there that are factually incorrect. They make a statement about Covid-19 vaccines having never been shown to ever lead to death. That is factually incorrect."
In the letter from the ABFM to Littell, Back writes "The myocarditis caused by COVID vaccination is mild and not associated with fatalities."
Ladapo says this is "factually incorrect"
"The official journal for pathologists in America reported sadly on the cases of two boys in Connecticut who died a few days after their second mRNA Covid-19 shot from acute myocarditis," said Ladapo, pointing to a study published on the NIH website. "I get that [Littell's] opinions may be uncommon among medical professionals, but he is doing what doctors are supposed to do which is to provide the best care they know how. So what they have done is disgusting and I hope that no one forgets what they've done because they really should be held accountable for what they have done," concluded Ladapo.
Little took to Twitter to thank Ladapo for his support.
"Thank you Dr. Ladapo and the thousands who support me and all medical students, physicians and healthcare workers who have been discriminated against, persecuted and ultimately silenced for choosing to uphold the Hippocratic Oath. We are fighting for the future of medicine," Tweeted Littell.
Thank you Dr. Ladapo and the thousands who support me and all medical students, physicians and healthcare workers who have been discriminated against, persecuted and ultimately silenced for choosing to uphold the Hippocratic Oath. We are fighting for the future of medicine.
— John Littell, MD (@JohnLittellMD) March 29, 2023
