Latest news with #PlasticSurgeryInstitute
BBC News
3 days ago
- Health
- BBC News
US drops charges against doctor accused of destroying Covid vaccines
The US attorney general has ordered charges to be dropped against a doctor accused of destroying Covid-19 vaccines worth $28,000 (£20,742), distributing fake vaccination record cards, and giving children saline shots instead of the vaccine at their parents' Bondi said Dr Michael Kirk Moore Jr. "gave his patients a choice when the federal government refused to do so". He had been indicted by the Justice Department under the Biden administration in plastic surgeon was already on trial in Utah, where he had pleaded not guilty to all charges including conspiracy to defraud the US. The acting US Attorney for the district of Utah, Felice John Viti, filed to dismiss the charges on Saturday, saying this was "in the interests of justice".Dr Moore was accused of providing fraudulently completed vaccination certificates for more than 1,900 vaccine doses, the US Attorney's office in Utah said in were allegedly provided, without administering the vaccine, for a charge of $50 (£37), in exchange for direct cash payments or donations to a specific government also accused him of giving children saline shots at their parents' request so that the "children would think they were receiving a COVID-19 vaccine," according to the US attorney's was accused alongside his company - Plastic Surgery Institute of Utah, Inc. - and three others of seeking to defraud the US and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Bondi wrote on X on Saturday that she had ordered the Justice Department to drop the charges because Dr Moore "did not deserve the years in prison he was facing".She said US Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene and Senator Mike Lee, both Republicans, had brought the case to her attention, calling them champions for "ending the weaponization of government".Lee thanked the attorney general for "standing with the countless Americans who endured too many official lies, mandates, and lockdowns during COVID".Dr Moore and other defendants faced up to 35 years in prison on multiple charges, according to the Associated Press news current US Health Secretary, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., ran a group for eight years, Children's Health Defense, that repeatedly questioned the safety and efficacy of vaccination. Kennedy has in the last year repeatedly said he is not "anti-vax" and will not be "taking away anybody's vaccines".
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Health
- Yahoo
Charges dropped against Utah doctor accused of throwing away $28,000 in COVID vaccine doses
The federal government on Saturday dismissed charges against a Utah plastic surgeon accused of throwing away COVID-19 vaccines, giving children saline shots instead of the vaccine and selling faked vaccination cards. U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi said in a post on the social media platform X that charges against Dr. Michael Kirk Moore, of Midvale, Utah, were dismissed at her direction. Moore and other defendants faced up to 35 years in prison after being charged with conspiracy to defraud the government; conspiracy to convert, sell, convey and dispose of government property; and aiding and abetting in those efforts. The charges were brought when Joe Biden was president. 'Dr. Moore gave his patients a choice when the federal government refused to do so,' Bondi wrote. 'He did not deserve the years in prison he was facing. It ends today.' Felice John Viti, acting U.S. attorney for Utah, filed the motion Saturday, saying 'such dismissal is in the interests of justice.' The trial began Monday in Salt Lake City with jury selection. It was expected to last 15 days. Messages sent to the U.S. Department of Justice, Viti's office in Salt Lake City and to Moore were not immediately returned Saturday to The Associated Press. A federal grand jury on Jan. 11, 2023, returned an indictment against Moore, his Plastic Surgery Institute of Utah Inc., others associated with the clinic and a neighbor of Moore's. The indictment alleged more than $28,000 of government-provided COVID-19 vaccine doses were destroyed. They were also accused of providing fraudulently completed vaccination record cards for over 1,900 doses of the vaccine in exchange for either a cash or a donation to a specified charitable organization. The government also alleged some children were given saline shots, at their parents' request, so the minors believed they were getting the vaccine. Health Secretary Robert Kennedy Jr., a leading anti-vaccine activist before becoming the nation's top health official, posted his support for Moore in April, saying on X that Moore "deserves a medal for his courage and his commitment to healing!' During his confirmation hearings in January, Kennedy repeatedly refused to acknowledge scientific consensus that childhood vaccines don't cause autism and that COVID-19 vaccines saved millions of lives. In a follow-up X post on Saturday, Bondi said Georgia Republican Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene brought the case to her attention. ___ Thiessen reported from Anchorage, Alaska.
The Independent
4 days ago
- Health
- The Independent
Charges dropped against Utah doctor accused of throwing away $28,000 in COVID vaccine doses
The federal government on Saturday dismissed charges against a Utah plastic surgeon accused of throwing away COVID-19 vaccines, giving children saline shots instead of the vaccine and selling faked vaccination cards. U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi said in a post on the social media platform X that charges against Dr. Michael Kirk Moore, of Midvale, Utah, were dismissed at her direction. Moore and other defendants faced up to 35 years in prison after being charged with conspiracy to defraud the government; conspiracy to convert, sell, convey and dispose of government property; and aiding and abetting in those efforts. The charges were brought when Joe Biden was president. 'Dr. Moore gave his patients a choice when the federal government refused to do so,' Bondi wrote. 'He did not deserve the years in prison he was facing. It ends today.' Felice John Viti, acting U.S. attorney for Utah, filed the motion Saturday, saying 'such dismissal is in the interests of justice.' The trial began Monday in Salt Lake City with jury selection. It was expected to last 15 days. Messages sent to the U.S. Department of Justice, Viti's office in Salt Lake City and to Moore were not immediately returned Saturday to The Associated Press. A federal grand jury on Jan. 11, 2023, returned an indictment against Moore, his Plastic Surgery Institute of Utah Inc., others associated with the clinic and a neighbor of Moore's. The indictment alleged more than $28,000 of government-provided COVID-19 vaccine doses were destroyed. They were also accused of providing fraudulently completed vaccination record cards for over 1,900 doses of the vaccine in exchange for either a cash or a donation to a specified charitable organization. The government also alleged some children were given saline shots, at their parents' request, so the minors believed they were getting the vaccine. Health Secretary Robert Kennedy Jr., a leading anti-vaccine activist before becoming the nation's top health official, posted his support for Moore in April, saying on X that Moore "deserves a medal for his courage and his commitment to healing!' During his confirmation hearings in January, Kennedy repeatedly refused to acknowledge scientific consensus that childhood vaccines don't cause autism and that COVID-19 vaccines saved millions of lives. In a follow-up X post on Saturday, Bondi said Georgia Republican Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene brought the case to her attention. ___ Thiessen reported from Anchorage, Alaska.
Associated Press
4 days ago
- Health
- Associated Press
Charges dropped against Utah doctor accused of throwing away $28,000 in COVID vaccine doses
The federal government on Saturday dismissed charges against a Utah plastic surgeon accused of throwing away COVID-19 vaccines, giving children saline shots instead of the vaccine and selling faked vaccination cards. U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi said in a post on the social media platform X that charges against Dr. Michael Kirk Moore, of Midvale, Utah, were dismissed at her direction. Moore and other defendants faced up to 35 years in prison after being charged with conspiracy to defraud the government; conspiracy to convert, sell, convey and dispose of government property; and aiding and abetting in those efforts. The charges were brought when Joe Biden was president. 'Dr. Moore gave his patients a choice when the federal government refused to do so,' Bondi wrote. 'He did not deserve the years in prison he was facing. It ends today.' Felice John Viti, acting U.S. attorney for Utah, filed the motion Saturday, saying 'such dismissal is in the interests of justice.' The trial began Monday in Salt Lake City with jury selection. It was expected to last 15 days. Messages sent to the U.S. Department of Justice, Viti's office in Salt Lake City and to Moore were not immediately returned Saturday to The Associated Press. A federal grand jury on Jan. 11, 2023, returned an indictment against Moore, his Plastic Surgery Institute of Utah Inc., others associated with the clinic and a neighbor of Moore's. The indictment alleged more than $28,000 of government-provided COVID-19 vaccine doses were destroyed. They were also accused of providing fraudulently completed vaccination record cards for over 1,900 doses of the vaccine in exchange for either a cash or a donation to a specified charitable organization. The government also alleged some children were given saline shots, at their parents' request, so the minors believed they were getting the vaccine. Health Secretary Robert Kennedy Jr., a leading anti-vaccine activist before becoming the nation's top health official, posted his support for Moore in April, saying on X that Moore 'deserves a medal for his courage and his commitment to healing!' During his confirmation hearings in January, Kennedy repeatedly refused to acknowledge scientific consensus that childhood vaccines don't cause autism and that COVID-19 vaccines saved millions of lives. In a follow-up X post on Saturday, Bondi said Georgia Republican Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene brought the case to her attention. ___ Thiessen reported from Anchorage, Alaska.
