Court Victory for Chiropractors Against Quack Buster, First Amendment Rules

Stephen Barrett M.D., known in many circles as a professional quack buster, or "consumer medical advocate", is a hero to some and a long-time scourge to others in the health profession as well as patients.

According to a verdict in the Appeals Court of the State of Pennsylvania, Barrett is the loser in his defamation case against chiropractor Tedd Koren, D.C. Barrett charged Koren with defamation of character and lost, according to a June 14 press release by the World Chiropractic Alliance.

Koren's company, Koren Publications, who markets educational pamphlets for chiropractors, once referred to Barrett as a "Quackpot" and that his vocal nemesis was "de-licensed," and "in trouble."

As a result, Barrett sued Koren for defamation in 2002 and a three-lawyer arbitration panel awarded Barrett damages in the amount of $16,500 and ordered Koren to retract his statements. In October of 2005, Judge J. Brian Johnson of the Pennsylvania court dismissed the lawsuit and ruled in favor of Koren and his First Amendment rights. The Pennsylvania Appeals Court upheld the original court's decision on June 14, 2007.

Barrett's quackery claims, found on his ten-year running web site Quackwatch.com, extend well beyond chiropractic care to many fields in both alternative and allopathic medicine, and include what Barrett deems as " Fad Diagnoses," such as Lyme disease, Gulf War Syndrome, Post Traumatic Stress Syndrome, and Chronic Fatigue Syndrome.

Additionally, far-reaching criticisms in position papers and forum discussions involve a plethora of well-known individuals such as Andrew Weil, twice Nobel Prize winner Linus Pauling, and Deepak Chopra, among hundreds of others both respected and controversial in their respective fields.

Attorney Carlos Negrete, legal counsel for the World Chiropractic Alliance (WCA), said in a press release, "facts about Barrett's own credentials that shocked even his supporters" came out in the proceedings and "under intense cross-examination, Barrett admitted that he had not been a licensed physician for more than a decade and had failed the neurological exam, preventing him from being certified as a specialist."

"Barrett also admitted, under questioning, that he misrepresented himself as a licensed physician in a previous court case," said Negrette in the press release.

It is thought by many in the chiropractic industry that Barrett has made a career out of attacking chiropractors and their methods. Chiropractic care makes up a significant proportion of the Quackwatch web site. Yet, for better or worse, there are few health industries Barrett or his followers fail to attack in some form or fashion.

Of little dispute is the value of promoting public knowledge concerning true quackery, involving dangerous products or procedures, bogus health claims or outright fraud that seize both victims' health and pocketbooks. But many people in the health and private sector feel that Barrett has gone too far, is vindictive and that his status as an expert is over-inflated.

WCA President Terry A. Rondberg, DC, agreed with Negrete. "This is a turning point not only for Barrett, but for all unscientific and uninformed opponents who seek to impose the medical monopoly on the public."

Sources: This story was adapted in part by a press release from the World Chiropractic Alliance,
(http://media.prnewswire.com/en/jsp/latest.jsp?resourceid=3494905&access=EH), June 14, 2007

The American Journal of Clinical Chiropractic, (http://www.idealspine.com/pages/ajcc_october_2005_quackbuster_vs_ted_koren.htm), October 2005

Court Orders Quackbusters Barrett and Polevoy to Post $433,715.93 Bond, The Bolen Report (http://www.bolenreport.net/feature_articles/feature_article060.htm)

(http://quackwatch.com/)