Anti-vaccine folks who are talking about “standard of care” when deciding who gets a medical exemption for vaccines obviously don’t really understand what it means.
Maybe that’s why they put standard of care in quotes in the above infographic against SB276, a new vaccine bill in California that will eliminate fake vaccine exemptions.
What Is Standard of Care?
When we talk about standard of care in medicine, it is important to understand that it is a legal term, with a legal definition:
“That which a minimally competent physician in the same field would do under similar circumstances”
Moffett et al on The Standard of Care: Legal History and Definitions: the Bad and Good News
Does this mean that the minimally competent physicians can choose whatever criteria they want to write fake medical exemptions for vaccines?
Of course not!
“Treatment that is accepted by medical experts as a proper treatment for a certain type of disease and that is widely used by healthcare professionals. Also called best practice, standard medical care, and standard therapy.”
NCI Dictionary of Cancer Terms
Just because a few doctors do something a certain way, that doesn’t make it the proper way for it to be done.
And that’s why a doctor making up their own rules for what counts as a vaccine medical exemption, especially when it goes against published guidelines and advice, isn’t standard of care.
More on Standard of Care
- Is Vaccine Discrimination a Thing?
- What Is the Evidence for Alternative Vaccine Schedules?
- How to Claim a Vaccine Exemption
- The History of Vaccine Exemptions
- Who Is Kenneth Stoller?
- Update on Vaccine Exemption Rates in California
- AAP – Vaccine Contraindications And Precautions
- ACIP – Contraindications and Precautions
- Dear Colleague letter regarding guidelines for use of immunization exemptions
- Vaccine Medical Exemptions Are a Delegated Public Health Authority
- What is the Medical Standard of Care?
- NCI Dictionary of Cancer Terms
- The Standard of Care: Legal History and Definitions: the Bad and Good News
- The Importance of Standard of Care and Documentation
- The Elusive Standard of Care.
I would point out that there is an idea of a “respactable minority” custom. You can have a custom that’s held by a minority of physicians but will be okay. But it’s still not “you can do whatever you want”. You can’t just make it up with no basis.