Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Doctors Outraged By Trump's 'Malicious' And 'Baseless' Claim Of Faked COVID Numbers
At a rally in Michigan on Friday, President Trump repeated an extraordinary and unfounded claim that American doctors were profiteering from coronavirus deaths. 鈥淵ou know our doctors get more money if somebody dies from Covid,鈥 Mr. Trump said, adding that in Germany and other countries, deaths were characterized differently if there appeared to be multiple causes. 鈥淲ith us, when in doubt, choose Covid,鈥 he said. Medical professionals and organizations quickly denounced those comments and lauded the work of nurses, doctors and other health care workers, many of whom have risked their lives and worried about the health of their families as they cared for people who were infected with the coronavirus. (Fortin, 10/31)
Medical groups, including the American Medical Association, denounced Trump's assertion that doctors inflate the number of deaths. AMA President Susan Bailey called Trump's claim "malicious, outrageous and completely misguided." ... "Rather than attacking us and lobbing baseless charges at physicians, our leaders should be following the science and urging adherence to the public health steps we know work: Wearing a mask, washing hands and practicing physical distancing," she said in a statement that did not mention Trump by name. (Fritze, 10/31)
A senior adviser to President Donald Trump鈥檚 reelection campaign doubled down Sunday on baseless allegations leveled by the president that U.S. doctors are inflating coronavirus deaths for profit as the country sees record levels of new infections. 鈥淚 don't think he was attacking anybody. He was talking about how most Americans want to safely and securely reopen the country,鈥 Jason Miller said on ABC鈥檚 鈥淭his Week鈥 when shown video of Trump鈥檚 claims from a campaign rally Friday. (Oprysko, 11/1)
In order for Trump鈥檚 claim to have an appreciable impact on reported deaths, thousands of doctors would need to lie on death certificates without any financial benefit. We recently rated False a similar claim from Trump that focused on hospitals. Trump鈥檚 words imply that death certificates are subject to the whim of physicians. That鈥檚 wrong, and here鈥檚 why. (Greenberg, 11/1)
