Originally published May 4 2015
Monopolistic medical establishment attacks 89-year-old philanthropist doctor who sees patients from car - He wins case!
by David Gutierrez, staff writer
(NaturalNews) An 89-year-old doctor who has been seeing low-income patients out of his car will be able to continue practicing after the Mississippi State Board of Medical Licensure (MBML) backed down on its threat to take away his license.
Dr. Carrol Landrum of Edwards, Mississippi, is a World War II Navy veteran who has been practicing in the rural community since the 1950s. News of his plight attracted international attention, garnering more than 80,000 signatures on an online petition in support of him.
"I want to thank the tens of thousands of people around the world who supported me," Landrum said after his successful meeting with the MBML.
Anonymous complaint not based on law
Landrum has been seeing patients out of his dented 2007 Toyota Camry ever since he left his office building due to concerns about rising crime in the area. His plans to secure a new office never came together, so he simply started practicing out of his car.
Last year, an MBML investigator informed Landrum that the board had received an anonymous complaint that he was practicing medicine and writing prescriptions out of his car. Although there appears to be no law or regulation against this practice, it was sufficient cause for the MBML to investigate him for months and threaten him with the loss of his license to practice medicine.
"He said the director had told him to ask me to surrender my license right then and there or I would come before the board," Landrum said. "And he said basically, 'If you surrender it here, nobody would know about it. But if it goes to the board, it'll be public knowledge and it might affect your reputation.'"
Landrum, the primary doctor for the area's low-income residents (per capita income in the region is only $12,000 per year), refused to stop practicing.
"Peoples' lives are at stake, and if I'm not there, a lot of them would die," he said.
"These people absolutely need me. I see the need and I'm trying to fulfill it as much as possible."
Community rallies, board backs down
Landrum's patients rallied to his defense, claiming the MBML was being heavy-handed and unfair.
"Taking his license?" said Leigh Jefferson, one of his patients. "I mean, that's pretty much like taking his livelihood. And you may as well take his life because that's what he's dedicated his life to doing."
Some of Landrum's supporters accused the MBML of persecuting Landrum on behalf of area doctors who were angry that he was undercutting their prices.
"I guess 'cause they don't get a percentage of what he's doing," said Edwards resident Terrance Williams. "When I was going to [another] doctor, paying all this extra money, they couldn't tell me nothing. That's the God's honest truth."
Landrum's case was taken up by attorneys from the Goldwater Institute, who facilitated an informal meeting with the MBML.
The meeting itself was cordial, Landrum said, and ended with the MBML finding him fit to practice but expressing concern that he was not keeping proper records due to the space constraints of his office. They recommended that Landrum take a course on record-keeping.
Fortunately, Landrum will no longer have to wrestle with the limitations of practicing from his car. Volunteers have refurbished an old post office for him, and his new office will be ready in a few weeks.
"He birthed us all," said Edwards resident Frederick Irving. "He's taken care of all of us. Not just us, but our parents. Without him, we'd be in trouble. He's the best doctor you'd ever have. Dr. Landrum is our doctor."
(Natural News Science)
Sources:
http://www.foxnews.com
http://watchdog.org
http://www.hattiesburgamerican.com
http://www.clarionledger.com
http://truthwiki.org/Medical_Fascism
All content posted on this site is commentary or opinion and is protected under Free Speech. Truth Publishing LLC takes sole responsibility for all content. Truth Publishing sells no hard products and earns no money from the recommendation of products. NaturalNews.com is presented for educational and commentary purposes only and should not be construed as professional advice from any licensed practitioner. Truth Publishing assumes no responsibility for the use or misuse of this material. For the full terms of usage of this material, visit www.NaturalNews.com/terms.shtml