Decorated neuroradiologists express ‘concerns’ over peer Scott Atlas’ White House guidance during pandemic
Twenty neuroradiologists expressed “concerns” about their peer Scott Atlas’ actions in the White House in an editorial published Saturday.
The letter comes less than a week after a scathing Washington Post investigation, detailing how the Stanford senior fellow has pushed “junk science” during the pandemic. First author Carolyn Meltzer, MD, and colleagues specifically cited Atlas’ “misrepresentations of the available scientific evidence about ‘herd immunity’ as a public health strategy for COVID-19.”
“As leaders in the field of neuroradiology, we are writing to express our concerns about the public statements of one of our neuroradiology colleagues, Dr. Scott Atlas. We do not take this action lightly,” Meltzer, an internationally recognized neuroradiologist with Emory University and RSNA board member, and colleagues wrote Oct. 24 in JACR. “Further unsubstantiated statements, devoid of scientific evidence or scholarship, misrepresent the safety of children returning to school and cast doubt on the advice of leading epidemiologists and other public health scientists and experts on this and related activities,” they added later.
“In the interest of public health,” Meltzer et al. are urging both citizens and institutions to seek COVID guidance from infectious disease specialists and epidemiologists. And they want their peers in imaging to focus on the facts during their pandemic response.
“We call on our radiology colleagues and other specialties to join us in the active representation of medical ethical principles to minimize harm and to rely on sound science by speaking to the evidence and partnering with those who are trained and knowledgeable to guide the public during this challenging time,” they concluded their brief two-paragraph letter.
President Donald Trump first tapped Atlas as a COVID-19 advisor over the summer, after reportedly seeing his contributions on Fox News. Nearly 100 Stanford Medicine physicians and scientists issued a similar letter in opposition of their former colleague back in September. In response, his attorney threatened legal retaliation against the writers.
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.