A group of five physicians were ejected from an American medical conference at the weekend after attempting to hand out printed copies of an editorial criticising the Trump administration.
A US-based diabetes conference was the site of a chaotic scene on Friday (local time) after police were called on five delegates who were distributing a paper that called out funding cuts and mistruths pushed by the country’s department of health.
At least two American Diabetes Association (ADA) leaders have now resigned as a result of the scandal, according to reporting in MedPage Today.
The ADA’s 2026 Scientific Sessions conference kicked off on 5 June in New Orleans, Louisiana.
The current National Institutes of Health director, Dr Jay Bhattacharya, was initially slated to speak at the conference’s opening. Dr Bhattacharya cancelled his appearance at the last minute, with a senior National Institutes of Health advisor taking his place.
A non-practising physician, Dr Bhattacharya rose to prominence in 2020 as a co-author of the Great Barrington Declaration, which advocated for herd immunity in place of covid-19 restrictions.
He has since been closely associated with the Make America Healthy Again movement spearheaded by Robert F Kennedy, Jr.
In light of Dr Bhattacharya’s appearance at the ADA conference, a group of five clinicians reportedly planned to distribute printed copies of an editorial critical of the Trump administration’s approach to science.
According to an account from one delegate, the five physicians were “forcefully ejected from the meeting, threatened with arrest and had their attendance at the meeting revoked”.
Multiple reports claim the ADA later sent an email to conference attendees explaining that it believed that the doctors had violated the conference code of conduct.
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It has since officially clarified that, under the laws governing non-profits in the USA, the ADA maintains “a strictly nonpartisan environment at all organizational events and functions”.
The paper itself was an editorial published in the ADA’s own journal, Diabetes Care, earlier this year.
“It is no longer enough to stand idly by or work behind the scenes with lawmakers,” the editorial reads.
“Moreover, it is no longer appropriate to fret about political backlash.
“Now is the time to recognize and fight to reverse the spiraling fall of the United States of America’s status as the foremost nation in health care innovation. As a nation, we must continue to believe in ensuring better health for all.”
Editorial lead author Dr Steven Kahn was one of the clinicians escorted out of the conference.
A Change.org petition titled An Open Letter to the American Diabetes Association: Shame on You was started by conference attendee Dr David Nathan and has since garnered more than 5000 signatures.
Dr Nathan was not one of the five ejected clinicians.
