Medical Professionals Urge Facebook to Take Action on Anti-Vaxxers

On February 8, 2021, Facebook announced another update to their policies to address COVID-19 and vaccine disinformation and misinformation on their platforms. Weeks later, Facebook has still not demonstrated the willingness or ability to thoroughly, accurately and equally enforce its stated policies. It’s time for Facebook to #FinishTheJob.

Review Facebook’s Stated Policies Here

See How the Disinformation Dozen Evades Enforcement of these Policies

More than 100 medical professionals signed this letter which will be sent to leadership at Facebook.

If you are a medical professional who would like to add your name to this letter, click the button below and show your support.

What the Letter Says

Dear Mr. Zuckerberg:

We live on the front lines of this pandemic. We see the harsh realities up close—losing patients, family members, friends and colleagues far too soon. Like you, we are putting all of our expertise to work to help bring this pandemic to an end. 

Our patients and our communities rely on us not just to provide care when they are sick, but also to help them navigate health information. Personal care in the face of COVID-19 is complicated, even without the proliferation of disinformation. It is heartbreaking to see high-profile individuals and organizations taking advantage of the pandemic to spread disproven rumors and prey on individuals’ medical hesitations. Nowhere is this more apparent than in the rise of vaccine hesitancy, driven directly by disinformation originated on and spread through the Facebook and Instagram social media platforms. Vaccine disinformation allowed to spread freely on your platforms is prolonging the pandemic and costing lives. 

We were pleased to see the latest update to your policies around vaccine disinformation and applaud the initial enforcement of those policies. However, much needs to be done to fully enforce them, while also being certain accurate science-based vaccine information is not inadvertently removed. It’s clear you understand the breadth of abuse of your platforms by individuals, organizations and private groups associated with them. We ask that you take immediate action to fully and transparently enforce the policies you have announced. Until you do, Facebook and Instagram will remain superspreaders of false, life-threatening information.

As we take two steps forward with increasingly available safe and effective vaccines, the content, pages and profiles that clearly and repeatedly violate your policies continue to take us one step back.

Policies without enforcement are just press releases. It’s time to finish the job and put an end to the part of the pandemic that Facebook and Instagram are extending.  We look forward to celebrating your success when you do.

Sincerely,

Richard Abrohams, MD

Grace Aldrovandi, MD

Louella Amos, MD

Corinne Andersen, LVN

Anne Annone, DMD

Anna Ansaldo, MD

Sandra Arca, MD

Roger Aviles, MD

Nicole Baldwin, MD

Ashley Balestriere, MSN, RN, RNC-NIC

Melissa Barry, MD

Monica Beamer, MD

Sheldon Berkowitz, MD

Julie Bjork, RN

Kelly Black, MD

Archie Bleyer, MD

Peter Boehm, MD

Julie Boom, MD

Nathan Boonstra, MD

Ryan Bowman, Medical Student

Lori Boyle, NP

Lori Boyle, NP

Kyla Boyse, NP

Thomas Bozzo, MD

Nelson Branco, MD

Mary Brennan, MD

Michael Brown, MD

Deborah Buchman, MD

Melody Butler, BSN, RN, CIC

Amy Callis, MPH

Caroline Caperton, MD

Nancy Cavanaugh, APRN

Karla Michelle Chaff, OT

Emily Chapman, MD

Pamela Gigi Chawla, MD

Nathan Chomilo, MD

Kayla Colburn, RN, BSN

Rod Cook, Supervising Scientist and Lab Manager

Lynn Coulter, MD

Sam Cousins, RN

Collin Cowart, RN

Tamera Coyne-Beasley, MD, MPH

Rachel Cunningham, MPH

Carol Dallas, RN OCN

Annabelle De St. Maurice, MD, MPH

Lori DeFrance, MD

Michael Deitchman, MD

Sandra Dickerson, OT

Vinson Diep, MD

Loren Dobkin, NP

Carol Downing, MD

Kathleen Durante, MD

Joan Edelstein, MSN, DrPH, RN

Kathryn Edwards, MD

Jaclyn Edwards, CMA

Francine Eisner, RN, BSN

Amy Eschinger, MD

Nina Eusani, RN

Judith Fardig, NM

Mark Farrior, MD

Stephanie Fields, RN

Sharon Fischer, RN

Rebecca Fleishman, Medical Sales Rep.

Leonard Friedland, MD

Jaime Friedman, MD

Katherine Gallardo, MD

Stephanie Gill, NP

Leah Gilliam, MD

Linda Girgis MD, MD

Beth Glover, RN

Scott Gorenstein,

Phyllis Gorin, MD

Monica Goyal, MD

Jeanine Graf, MD

Krystle Graham, MD

Hector Grajeda, MD

Carol Greenough, PhD

Jen Griffith-Weprin, NP

Susan Halverson, MD

Frank Han, MD

Christine Hara, MD

Cheryl Hardin, MD

Amy Harpstrite, MD

Chip Hart, Director of Pediatric Solutions

Ryan Hassan, MD

Cynthia Hillinger,

Andrea Houfek, MD

Bernadine Huff, BSN CCM CHPN

Vincent Iannelli, MD

Megan Iliev, MD

Robert M Jacobson, MD

Marcela Kalina, MD

Robert Karasov, MD

Gretchen Karstens, MD

Amanda Keerbs, MD

Sheila Kelly, RN

Phillip Kibort, MD

Daniel Kohen, MD

Mary Koslap-Petraco, NP

Kristin Koush, MD

Suanne Kowal-Connelly, MD

Daniel Kraft, MD

Susan Kressly, MD

Kathleen Kulus, MD

AV Law, PhD

Kamrynn Lawton, California Immunization Coalition

Caitlin Leary, MS CCLS

Tara Lee, RN

Yuri Lee, MD

Jill Leeth, RN

Deborah Lehman, MD

Karen Leitner, MD

Jessica Lennon, RN BSN

Herschel Lessin, MD

Ann Lewandowski, Executive Director

Caitlin Liberatore, PA

Hannah Lichtsinn, MD

Ann Macke, Dr

Matthew Majzun, DO

Kim Mangham, MD

Blima Marcus, DNP

Letha Martin, RN

Susan Martin, MD

Rachel Martin-Blais, MD

Stephanie Marton, MD, MPH

Jami Maxson, MD

Alex McDonald, MD

Lindy McGee, MD

Victoria Mead, MD

Bradley Mercer, MD

Yoav Messinger, MD

Teri Mills, RN

Danielle Moore, NP

Julie Morita, MD

Elizabeth Murray, MD

Taylor Nichols, MD

Nada Nikolic, MD

Stacey Orlowski, DrPH

Lisa Ospina, PA

Amy Patel, MD

Elana Pearl Ben-Joseph, MD, MPH

Marilyn Peitso, MD

Kelly Peters, Behavioral Scientist

Iva Petrovic, MD

Alice Phillips, MD

Stanley Plotkin, MD

Terry Polevoy, MD

Ron Porter, MD

Victoria Psomiadis, MD

Beth Purkey, RN

Kristen Pyrc, MD

Daniel Pyron, LPN

Kathy Quan, RN

Wendy Regan, MD

Brit Reis, MD

Guadalupe Reyna, MD

Grant Ritchey, DDS

Michael Rocha, MD

Leila Sahni, PhD, MPH

Nick Sawyer, MD

Madalyn Schaefgen, MD

William Schaffner, MD

David J Schmeling, MD

Mary Schnabel, APRN-CPNP

Samuel Schriever, Medical Student

Peter Sears, MD

Robert Segal, MD

Andrew Seiler, MD

Tia Seleg, Respiratory Therapist

Katherine Senior, MBBS FRACGP FAChAM(AT)

Ariel Simons, MD

Matthew Snyder, Medical Student

Stanley Spinner, MD

Erin Steinsdoerfer, EFDA

Kara Stewart, MD

Ronan Strain, PhD Student

Dona Streetman, Rehab

Savannah Stumph, MD

Shannon Suo, MD

Eve Switzer, MD, FAAP

Doreen Teoh, MD

Jason Terk, MD

Richard Thoune, Health Officer

Shannon Throndson, MD

Robert Tuchler, MD

Jaime Twanow, MD

Kathy Valero, PA-C

Patricia Valusek, MD

Bonnie Walker, LPN

Tarah Walsh, Director of Digital Strategy

Maria Weaver, NP

Elvi Whiteford, MD

Patricia Whitley-Williams, MD, MD

Cynthia Whitney, MD

Matthew Wigder, MD

Asher Williams, PhD

Sheri Williams, MD

Jennifer Wolford, MD

Margaret Wood, MD

Patti Wukovits, RN

Shmuel Yonah, BSN, RN

Lucia Yu, RN

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