The Ontario medical regulator has withdrawn disciplinary proceedings against Dr. Kulvinder Kaur Gill, a physician who became well-known during the COVID-19 pandemic for her online challenges to the government’s public health restrictions.
The Democracy Fund (TDF), an organization offering legal support to Dr. Gill, announced this
recent decision by the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario (CPSO) in
a press release on Sept. 14. The regulator’s 15-day disciplinary proceeding was initially scheduled to begin in
January next year, according to Lisa Bildy, a lawyer of the Libertas Law firm, who also represents Dr. Gill.
“While we are pleased that some of the burden has now been lifted from Dr. Gill’s shoulders and she has been vindicated, it is concerning that it went this far,” Ms. Bildy said in the TDF press release.
“The top-down imposition of a singular unquestionable narrative, on pain of disciplinary proceedings, has been damaging not only to the doctors who advocated for evidence-based medicine and robust scientific debate about novel public health measures and their consequences, but it has also been damaging to the credibility of the institutions which imposed them.”
Dr. Gill, who described the withdrawal of the disciplinary proceedings as a form of “public vindication,” conveyed her appreciation to her legal team and the public for their support in
a post on X released on Sept. 14.
According to the TDF, the CPSO unexpectedly withdrew its Notice of Hearing on Sept. 12, signalling the abandonment of its case and disciplinary hearing against Dr. Gill. The CPSO conveyed this decision through an
email addressed to the chair of the Ontario Physicians and Surgeons Discipline Tribunal. The allegations against Dr. Gill were previously referred to the tribunal on Oct. 13, 2022. Notably, the CPSO did not provide any specific reasons for this decision in its email.
A
Notice of Hearing against Dr. Gill, dated Oct. 13, 2022, alleged that between roughly February 2021 and 2022, she had engaged in “disgraceful, dishonourable or unprofessional conduct” on social media, online, and on other digital platforms. This conduct includes “making misleading, false or inflammatory statements about vaccinations, treatments and public health measures for COVID-19.”
The Epoch Times has reached out to the CPSO for comment on its decision, but didn’t hear back immediately.
Battle Continues
Dr. Gill, who specializes in pediatrics, allergy, and clinical immunology, amassed a substantial following on X, formerly known as Twitter, where she has shared opinions and expressed concerns about the government’s pandemic response, including the potential adverse effects of lockdowns and other mandates.Due to her online advocacy, Dr. Gill became the subject of seven public complaints lodged with the CPSO, as well as a separate investigation by the Registrar. All eight cases were reviewed by the CPSO committee known as the Inquiries, Complaints, and Reports Committee (ICRC) on Feb. 3, 2021. While the ICRC dismissed five of the complaints, it issued orders for three separate cautions to be placed on Dr. Gill’s public record.
In October 2022, Dr. Gill appeared before a review board, Health Professions Appeal and Review Board (HPARB), which reviews decisions made by the ICRC, seeking to overturn the cautions imposed by the regulator. A member of the review board
had said at the time that separate decisions would be made later regarding these complaints. However, an application for judicial review in relation to one of the three CPSO cautions was initiated, following a Registrar’s investigation of Dr. Gill’s tweets; hence, the board won’t review or rule on that one.
In
a statement posted on X on Sept. 14, Ms. Bildy noted that Dr. Gill’s legal battle is not fully over. The Divisional Court will be hearing a judicial review in early 2024 concerning her past tweets.
Marnie Cathcart and Noé Chartier contributed to this report.
