Sponsored by:
Senator JOSEPH F. VITALE
District 19 (Middlesex)
SYNOPSIS
Establishes act of disseminating misinformation as professional misconduct for health care professionals.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
As introduced.
An Act concerning health misinformation and supplementing Title 45 of the Revised Statutes.
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. a. A health care professional who engages in the dissemination of misinformation or disinformation shall be deemed to have engaged in professional misconduct in violation of subsection e. of section 8 of P.L.1978, c.73 (C.45:1-21) and shall be subject to disciplinary action pursuant to P.L.1978, c.73 (C.45:1-14 et seq.).
b. Each board shall establish by rule or regulation:
(1) the general causes which constitute grounds for professional misconduct and disciplinary action pursuant to subsection a. of this section; and
(2) the appropriate disciplinary actions that may be taken against a health care professional based on the extent of the dissemination of misinformation or disinformation.
c. As used in this section:
Board mean any professional or occupational licensing board designated pursuant to section 2 of P.L. 1978, c.73 (C.45:1-15) that licenses or certifies health care professionals in this State.
Disinformation means misinformation that is deliberately disseminated with malicious intent or an intent to mislead.
Disseminate means the conveyance of information, in the form of treatment or advice, by a health care professional to a patient under the health care professionals care.
Health care professional means an individual licensed or certified to practice health care pursuant to Title 45 of the Revised Statutes.
Misinformation means any health-related claim of fact that is false and contradicted by contemporary scientific consensus contrary to the standard of care.
2. This act shall take effect immediately.
STATEMENT
This bill establishes the act of disseminating misinformation or disinformation by a health care professional as an act of professional misconduct subject to disciplinary action. It is the sponsors intent that this legislation will help combat health misinformation and curb the spread of falsehoods that threaten the health and safety of New Jersey residents.
The bill defines disseminate to mean the conveyance of information, in the form of treatment or advice, from a health care professional to a patient under the health care professionals care. Misinformation means any health-related claim of fact that is false and contradicted by contemporary scientific consensus contrary to the standard of care. Disinformation means misinformation that is deliberately disseminated with malicious intent or an intent to mislead.