In March 2020, Dr. Mary Talley Bowden had recently returned to her Houston medical career following an extended maternity leave. An ear, nose and throat specialist, she enjoyed privileges (procedures a physician can perform at a medical facility) at Houston Methodist Hospital but maintained her own private practice.
At the time, she was confounded by a teenage patient who returned from a school trip to China with what appeared to be a stubborn case of bronchitis. This patient became Dr. Bowden’s introduction to COVID-19 and the beginning of a life-changing journey.
Facing Endless Criticism
The Stanford-educated author remembers sparking hostility when she began to treat COVID-19 patients. After she received press attention for offering a swab-free nasal discharge test for the virus, some podcasters on social media called her a grifter for charging upwards of $200 for the test.Her critics ignored that these tests weren’t covered by most medical insurance policies and required overnight specimen shipments to laboratories for next-day results, hence the fee which she tried to keep down. The free swab-based tests took up to two weeks to determine results, forcing patients to remain in quarantine longer.
An Out-of-Control FDA
Dr. Bowden details how the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) overstepped its boundaries by bullying doctors and pharmacists not to use hydroxychloroquine, ivermectin, and monoclonal antibodies in COVID-19 treatments.“The FDA does not have the authority to weigh in on treatment of medical conditions,” she wrote. “The FDA’s role is to approve prescription medications, not to regulate their off-label use or prohibit physicians from prescribing them for conditions they deem appropriate.”
Instead, the FDA under the Biden administration rushed out a vaccine without conducting long-term safety tests. Vaccine mandates were forced on the public; those who declined could be fired.
Dr. Bowden admits she reluctantly decided to get a shot. But she grew impatient at standing on a too-long line at a pharmacy and left. She never got the jab, nor did she get COVID-19.
An Unnecessary Death
However, Dr. Bowden couldn’t help to notice how a growing number of vaccinated people were still testing positive. She successfully prescribed ivermectin for respiratory illnesses, which the FDA falsely positioned as a “horse dewormer” pill.She wasn’t alone in her focus on ivermectin. “Dangerous Misinformation” goes into heartbreaking depth about her efforts to help Jason Jones, a sheriff’s deputy who was admitted to Texas Health Huguley Hospital in Fort Worth with a COVID-19-damaged respiratory system. His family sought ivermectin treatment, but the doctors ignored their request.
The patient’s wife reached out to Dr. Bowden for help, but the hospital threw ridiculous obstacles in her path. They had the audacity to file an unwarranted complaint against her with the Texas Medical Board. Yet the hospital’s efforts to treat Jones failed miserably. He withered to 105 pounds before passing away on April 11, 2023.
Facing the Backlash
“Dangerous Misinformation” travels into the exhausting legal fight that Dr. Bowden faced against the medical establishment for questioning the efficacy of the COVID-19 vaccines and championing the medications prohibited by Biden’s FDA.She was accused of spreading medical misinformation on social media. She was called an anti-vaxxer for pointing out the well-documented problems in previous hastily engineered vaccine campaigns.
She had her privileges at Houston Methodist Hospital suspended; she resigned her affiliation from that institution shortly afterward. Texas Medical Board smeared her with an administrative penalty and public reprimand.
She received threatening voicemails, endless insults from both legacy and social media, and a terrifying incident with an angry man storming into her office. Her four years of legal bills hemorrhaged to $260,000 and the emotional cost was immeasurable.
But the power of “Dangerous Misinformation” comes from the author’s refusal to abandon her principles in the face of outrageous assaults on her character. Her spirited defense against these vile forces slowly began to produce results. The Texas legislature passed a resolution honoring her pandemic-era work and passed a law prohibiting workplace vaccine mandates.
Five states now allow ivermectin to be sold as an over-the-counter drug and others are considering making it available. Earlier this year, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton took the unprecedented step of supporting her legal action against the Texas Medical Board’s reprimand.
“Dangerous Misinformation” is inspiring, infuriating and a much-needed reminder that questioning political and medical authority is not a crime. Dr. Bowden’s audacity to expose malice and dishonesty during a health crisis makes her a hero for our times.
