“Rand Paul’s medical license was just revoked!”

YouTube recently suspended Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., after he posted a video questioning the effectiveness of masks against COVID-19. But did Paul, an ophthalmologist, also lose his medical license? 

That’s the word on social media. Still, don’t believe everything you read there. 

“Rand Paul’s medical license was just revoked!” one post said. Another claimed that the American Medical Association “revoked the ophthalmologist’s ability due to ‘ethical concerns’ and Paul’s ‘blatant disregard for the Hippocratic Oath.’” 

These posts were flagged as part of Facebook’s efforts to combat false news and misinformation on its News Feed. (Read more about our partnership with Facebook.)

That’s because this claim originated on a satirical section of a website called Patheos. 

The text about Paul losing his license due to “ethical concerns” comes straight from an Aug. 10 post on Patheos tagged as satire. 

But that context is missing in the posts that are being shared on social media. 

According to the Kentucky Board of Medical Licensure, Paul is an active, licensed physician. 

We rate this post Pants on Fire!