Dr. Ryan Cole’s medical license is limited in Washington state after state regulators concluded that Cole knowingly shared incorrect information about COVID-19 and violated medical criteria by prescribing ivermectin to COVID-19 patients, as opposed to medical testing.
Cole is an Idaho pathologist who spread misinformation about COVID-19 while serving as an Idaho fitness officer.
She underwent invasive surgery after being misdiagnosed by Dr. Ryan Cole of Idaho. She now she is a complaint.
The Washington Medical Commission’s resolution barred Cole, for five years, from practicing No. 1 care medicine and prescribing drugs to patients in Washington. Cole’s medical practice in Washington is now limited to pathology practice.
Cole violated medical practice criteria by prescribing ivermectin for COVID-19 to at least 4 patients on an instant messaging-based telehealth platform, the commission ruled. Most likely, Cole knew that his claims about COVID-19 were a “misrepresentation of actual facts,” the commission ruled.
If Cole needs to retain his medical license in Washington state, he will have to take medical courses and write an essay focused on honesty in medicine. The commission ordered Cole to take courses focused on COVID-19, lung and respiratory diseases, medical history. permanency and telehealth within six months.
The commission ordered Cole to submit an essay of at least 1,000 words on “professionalism, truthfulness and honesty in medicine. “The document explains, according to the commission, how Cole would apply what he learned in his medical practice. Cole deserves to be willing to discuss the paper’s content with the commission, according to the ruling.
The commission imposed fines of $5,000.
Failure to comply with the order could simply result in the suspension or revocation of Cole’s license, the commission warned.
Cole and his attorney may not be immediately available for comment. However, in a 40-page reaction to the Washington Medical Board to court cases filed against him, Cole and his attorney argued that he did not violate any rules when he prescribed medication to telehealth patients and claimed that COVID-19 vaccines were unsafe. But some of the arguments put forward in the reaction to the Washington Medical Commission don’t fit with Cole’s public comments, according to research conducted through the Idaho Capital Sun.
In taking the budget for COVID-19, Cole has been “reckless” with lab operations, with records, and with former staff.
In public appearances, Cole said the court cases are politically motivated attacks.
It’s unclear exactly what the resolution means for Cole’s medical leave in Idaho. The Idaho Board of Medicine had in the past filed a complaint about Cole’s medical license in Idaho without reviewing patient records, the Idaho Capital Sun reported in the past.
Cole is the physician representative on the Central District Board of Health, which runs Idaho’s largest regional public fitness department.
Cole’s term on the Central District Board of Health expires in June 2026, fitness district spokeswoman Maria Ortega told the Idaho Capital Sun. All fitness district county commissioners can appoint a representative physician to the Central District health board, Ortega said. Cole was originally nominated through Ada County Commissioners Rod Beck and Ryan Davidson. Cole later appeared through the county fitness district commissioners in 2021.
Cole can also be removed from the district’s central fitness board if a majority of the district’s county commissioners vote in his favor, according to the council’s bylaws. Members of the board of directors would possibly resign as well. Central District Health serves 4 counties: Ada, Boise, Elmore, and Valley.
Cole can appeal the ruling after completing an approved course in family medicine, the commission said.
Cole has been licensed as a physician and surgeon in Washington since 2007.
Cole “ignored the full framework of COVID-related evidence” and “misrepresented that evidence when he presented an aspect to the public. “
Cole’s conduct can harm others and erode acceptance among health care professionals, the commission said.
“The behavior in (Cole’s) presentation raises concerns that (Cole) may use his professional position as a physician to harm members of the public. There can be no legitimate dispute that it also tends to lower the standing of physicians in the eyes of the public,” the commission concluded.
Cole’s care of four patients to prescribe ivermectin and other unproven COVID-19 drugs “was inadequate,” the commission concluded. Cole was also cheating on her education and enjoying his family medicine presentations, the commission said, and he continued to misrepresent hearings before the Washington Medical Commission.
“Even if (Cole) had been more credible, his recent lack of education and delight in providing direct patient care also means that the panel will have to give little weight to his testimony,” the commission said.
The commission referenced Cole’s common public comments on COVID-19 in its decision, saying Cole “engaged in a trend of dishonesty. “Cole’s false statements about COVID, ivermectin, and the mask “are destructive and harmful to individual patients, breed distrust in the medical career and public health, and have a negative effect on widespread health and well-being. “of our communities,” the commission stated.
A 2022 investigation by the Idaho Capital Sun found that Cole gave talks and presentations in at least four foreign countries — England, France, Brazil and Ireland — and at least 15 states including Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Florida, Hawaii, Indiana, Missouri, New Hampshire, New York, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Texas, Washington and Idaho, as well as in Puerto Rico and Washington, D.C. In addition, Cole had done more than 70 online presentations, podcasts and video interviews since early 2021, the investigation found.
Idaho medical board closed a complaint against Dr. Cole — before it even saw patient records
Cole, in stating that he believed his false statements to be true, “made his own interpretations of existing knowledge about COVID-19 and then was about to compare other perspectives as more evidence became available,” the commission said. .
This is “problematic,” the commission wrote, “because the nature of medical practice requires that physicians be skeptical of their own interpretations and aware of an ever-changing framework of evidence. “
Cole “interfered” with the investigation by “intentionally misrepresenting the facts,” the commission said. He did so when he told the commission, in a brief, that he had not told patients or the general public to avoid the COVID-19 vaccine, the commission said. That misrepresented the facts, the commission said, pointing to Cole’s public comments.
Cole knew, or should know as a “reasonably prudent physician” that many of his statements about COVID distorted the truth, the commission said.
Medical evidence does not indicate that ivermectin “is effective in treating or preventing COVID-19,” the commission said.
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by Kyle Pfannenstiel, Idaho Capital Sun January 10, 2024
Dr. Ryan Cole’s medical license is limited in Washington state after state regulators concluded that Cole knowingly shared incorrect information about COVID-19 and violated medical criteria by prescribing ivermectin to COVID-19 patients, contrary to medical evidence.
Cole is an Idaho pathologist who spread misinformation about COVID-19 while serving as an Idaho fitness officer.
She underwent invasive surgery after she was misdiagnosed by Dr. Ryan Cole of Idaho. Now it’s a complaint.
The Washington Medical Commission’s resolution barred Cole, for five years, from practicing No. 1 care medicine and prescribing drugs to patients in Washington. Cole’s medical practice in Washington is now limited to pathology practice.
Cole violated medical practice criteria by prescribing ivermectin for COVID-19 to at least 4 patients via an instant messaging-based telehealth platform, the commission ruled. Most likely, Cole knew that his claims about COVID-19 were a “misrepresentation of genuine facts. “”, the commission ruled.
If Cole needs to retain his medical license in Washington state, he will have to take medical courses and write an essay focused on honesty in medicine. The commission ordered Cole to take courses focused on COVID-19, lung and respiratory diseases, medical history. permanency and telehealth within six months.
The commission ordered Cole to submit an essay of at least 1,000 words on “professionalism, truthfulness and honesty in medicine. “The document shows, according to the commission, how Cole would apply what he learned in his medical practice. Cole deserves to be prepared to discuss the paper’s content with the commission, according to the decision.
The commission imposed fines of $5,000.
Failure to comply with the order could simply result in the suspension or revocation of Cole’s license, the commission warned.
Cole and his attorney could not be immediately reached for comment. However, in a 40-page response to the Washington Medical Board to complaints against him, Cole and his attorney argued that he did not violate any rules when he prescribed drugs to patients over telehealth and claimed COVID-19 vaccines are dangerous. But some of the arguments in the response to the Washington Medical Commission do not match Cole’s public comments, investigations by the Idaho Capital Sun have found.
In taking the budget for COVID-19, Cole was “reckless” with the lab’s operations, according to records and former staff members.
In public appearances, Cole said the court cases are politically motivated attacks.
It’s unclear exactly what the resolution means for Cole’s medical leave in Idaho. The Idaho Board of Medicine had in the past filed a complaint about Cole’s medical license in Idaho without reviewing patient records, the Idaho Capital Sun reported in the past.
Cole serves as physician representative on the Central District Health Board of Health, which directs Idaho’s largest regional public health department.
Cole’s term on the Central District Health board expires June 2026, health district spokesperson Maria Ortega told the Idaho Capital Sun. All county commissioners in the entire health district can appoint a physician representative to Central District Health’s board, Ortega said. Cole was initially appointed by Ada County Commissioners Rod Beck and Ryan Davidson. Cole was later confirmed by county commissioners in the health district in 2021.
Cole can also be removed from the district’s central fitness board if a majority of the district’s county commissioners vote in his favor, according to the council’s bylaws. Members of the board of directors would possibly resign as well. Central District Health serves 4 counties: Ada, Boise, Elmore, and Valley.
Cole can appeal the ruling after completing an approved course in family medicine, the commission said.
Cole has been licensed as a physician and surgeon in Washington since 2007.
Cole “ignored all COVID-related evidence” and “misrepresented that evidence when presenting one aspect to the public. ”
Cole’s conduct could harm others and erode acceptance among medical professionals, the commission said.
“The behavior in (Cole’s) presentation raises concerns that (Cole) may use his professional position as a physician to harm members of the public. There can be no legitimate dispute that it also tends to lower the standing of physicians in the eyes of the public,” the commission concluded.
Cole’s care of four patients to prescribe ivermectin and other untested COVID-19 drugs “was inadequate,” the commission concluded. Cole was also cheating on his education and enjoying his family medicine presentations, said the committee, which continued to misrepresent hearings before the Washington Medical Commission.
“Even if (Cole) had been more credible, his lack of recent education and delight in offering direct patient care also means that the panel will have to give little weight to his testimony,” the commission said.
The commission referenced Cole’s common public comments about COVID-19 in its ruling, saying Cole “committed dishonesty. Cole’s false claims – about COVID, ivermectin and the mask – “are destructive and harmful to individual patients, generate distrust in the medical profession and public health, and have a widespread negative effect on the health and well-being of our communities,” the commission said.
A 2022 investigation by the Idaho Capital Sun found that Cole had lectured and presented in at least four foreign countries (England, France, Brazil, and Ireland) and at least 15 states, in addition to Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Florida, Hawaii, and Indiana. , Missouri, New Hampshire, New York, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Texas, Washington and Idaho, as well as Puerto Rico and Washington, D. C. In addition, Cole has conducted more than 70 online presentations, podcasts, and video interviews since the beginning of 2021. , the survey found.
The Idaho Medical Board filed an opposition to Dr. Cole, even before it had noticed the patient records.
Cole, in stating that he believed his false statements were true, “made his own interpretations of the knowledge we had about COVID-19 and was then about to compare other perspectives as more evidence became available,” the commission said.
This is “problematic,” the commission wrote, “because the nature of medical practice demands that physicians be skeptical of their own interpretations and be aware of an ever-changing framework of evidence. “
Cole “interfered” with the investigation by “willfully misrepresenting facts,” the commission said. He did that when he told the commission, in a written statement, that he didn’t tell patients or the general public to avoid the COVID-19 vaccine, the commission said. That statement misrepresented the facts, the commission said, pointing to Cole’s public comments.
Cole knew, or had known as a “reasonably prudent physician” that many of his statements about COVID misrepresented the truth, the commission said.
Medical evidence implies that ivermectin “is effective in treating or preventing COVID-19,” the commission said.
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The Idaho Capital Sun belongs to States Newsroom, a network of grant-backed news bureaus and a coalition of donors as a 501c public charity(3). Idaho Capital Sun maintains its editorial independence. Please contact Editor Christina Lords if you have any questions: info@idahocapitalsun. com. Follow the Idaho Capital Sun on Facebook and Twitter.
Kyle covers physical care and other issues as a reporter for the Idaho Capital Sun.
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