Connecticut doctor’s license suspended for providing blank, signed Covid-19 exemption forms, health department says

By Sahar Akbarzai, CNN

A Connecticut doctor’s state physician and surgeon license has been suspended for providing blank, signed exemption forms related to the Covid-19 vaccine, Covid testing, general vaccines and medical opposition to wearing facial masks, the state Department of Public Health said.

Connecticut’s Medical Examining Board suspended the license through a unanimous decision last week, the department said in a news release issued September 24.

Retired physician Sue Mcintosh of Durham, who is certified by the American Board of Pediatrics, was giving signed forms to people without physically meeting them or examining them, the department said. She would provide the exemption forms to anyone who provided a self-addressed stamped envelope requesting one, they said.

On Friday morning, Mcintosh voluntarily surrendered her license to practice medicine to the Connecticut Department of Health, according to another news release from the Department of Health.

Mcintosh provided signed medical exemption forms for vaccines and masks, and told people they could copy and distribute the signed forms to anyone, according to documents in the Connecticut Medical Examining Board’s meeting agenda.

Mcintosh sent instructions to people who requested the forms, according to the documents, saying “Keep blank copies for yourself for future use,” and, “let freedom ring!”

CNN has reached out to Mcintosh for comment.

“These actions by Dr. Mcintosh are irresponsible and unacceptable,” said Dr. Manisha Juthani, commissioner of Connecticut’s Department of Public Health, in a statement. “Her practice of medicine represents a clear and immediate danger to the public health and safety of our communities.”

Juthani said the signed exemption forms from Mcintosh are invalid. They include forms she provided to people who work in long-term care, in schools or for the state who were seeking medical exemptions.

According to the DPH release, “an exemption calls for a clinical assessment of the patient’s condition to determine if a vaccination poses a risk to the patient’s health.”

Mcintosh’s voluntary surrender of her medical license will be reported to the National Practitioner Data Bank, which is, “a web-based repository of reports containing information on medical malpractice payments and certain adverse actions related to health care practitioners, providers, and suppliers,” the release from the Department of Health states.

This data base prevents practitioners from moving to different states to practice medicine without disclosing any disciplinary actions taken against them previously, the release said.

Juthani said Mcintosh’s case may also be referred to state of federal law enforcement entities for review.

Anonymous tip to the health department

The Department of Public Health received an anonymous complaint in July alleging Mcintosh’s misconduct.

The anonymous complaint said “all one must do is send a self addressed stamped manila envelope to her address for every person you would like an exemption for and she will mail signed documentation for you to fill out ‘certifying’ an allergy,” according to the Medical Examining Board’s documents.

In September, an investigator for the department mailed a self-addressed envelope to the doctor with his home address. The envelope was sent back with four forms authorizing exemptions for face masks, Covid vaccines, Covid testing and vaccines in general, plus instructions, according to the documents.

In August, Gov. Ned Lamont announced that he had issued an executive “requiring that all Connecticut state employees and staff of all childcare facilities and preK-12 schools statewide must have received at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine by September 27,” according to a news release.

“Those who do not get vaccinated due to certain exemptions will be required to be tested for COVID-19 on a weekly basis. However, state hospital and long-term care employees will not have the option of being tested in lieu of vaccination,” the release said.

The-CNN-Wire
™ & © 2021 Cable News Network, Inc., a WarnerMedia Company. All rights reserved.