Judge denies injunction in case over radiologist booted from state medical board
A judge has denied a requested injunction, seeking to compel Wyoming authorities to restore a radiologist’s role on the state medical board after he was forced to resign.
Frederick “Eric” Cubin, MD, and his attorneys in August filed suit against Wyoming Gov. Mark Gordon (R), claiming he violated the physician’s free speech rights.
Cubin had sent a message from his personal email account last year to all 62 members of the state House of Representatives. He was asking local lawmakers to support “Chloe’s Law,” which prohibits Wyoming physicians from providing gender-affirming care to minors.
Gordon—who later signed the legislation into law—removed the radiologist from the state medical board, concerned that Cubin could appear biased when weighing future matters. The Liberty Justice Center said it is now appealing.
“The record in this case is clear: Gov. Gordon fired Dr. Cubin from the Wyoming Board of Medicine because he spoke out on legislation,” Jacob Huebert, president of the LJC, said in a statement shared Wednesday. “There was no valid justification for the governor’s retaliation.”
Attorneys emphasized that Cubin, who practices in Casper, Wyoming, was speaking as a private citizen when he sent the letter.
Marty Stempniak has covered healthcare since 2012, with his byline appearing in the American Hospital Association's member magazine, Modern Healthcare and McKnight's. Prior to that, he wrote about village government and local business for his hometown newspaper in Oak Park, Illinois. He won a Peter Lisagor and Gold EXCEL awards in 2017 for his coverage of the opioid epidemic.