Doctors and parents argue over medical mask opt-out; some families travel out of state to sign the form!

There are some parents of Duval County students who are keeping their children home this week. This is because they happen to fight against the district’s mask instructions.

It has been reported that there are families who are having difficulty in finding a doctor who can sign the medical opt-out form. There are even some parents who are driving out of state to see a physician.  Taran Helm, who is a mother of three Duval county students, said, “When a doctor is telling us no, shame on you.” In search of a doctor who would sign the medical opt-out form for her daughters, this mother is hitting roadblock after roadblock. 

According to Helm, One of her daughters has severe panic attacks upon wearing a mask. Whereas the other is partially deaf. She further says that all the doctors refuse to hear it. She even said that “Every single receptionist that I have spoken to verbatim, they tell me that they will not entertain the notion of a medical opt out for face coverings.”

According to a pediatrician named Dr. Ryan, “Parent’s personal choice of wanting a mask doesn’t necessarily mean their child has a medical reason to opt-out of masks.” He further states that most of the doctors are only signing the form of children that suffer from certain medical conditions. These conditions also include severely developmentally delayed or those with abnormalities with the neck, face, or head.

The pediatrician asked the Duval County School Board to look out for those forms that the same doctor signs and they should also look out for those doctors who are granting the opt-out to children to whom they’ve never treated. According to Dr. Cantville, the doctors signing the opt-out forms are committing fraud. He says, “I think a physician like that, who is committing fraud in my opinion by signing those, should be reported to the state board.”

Helm says that in order to make her case, she has contacted at least two doctors that are from outside the Jacksonville area. For a while, she has decided to keep her kids at home. She further states that “You end up having to doctor shop when your own doctor’s office won’t even listen to you. So, what are you supposed to do? Are you just supposed to give up at that point? No. I can’t give up on my children.” 

In order to control the spread of coronavirus, following the SOPs is essential. One of the SOPs requires everyone to wear a mask, but some people might get anxious or out of breath upon wearing masks. A few health professionals allow mask opt-out for such people, but such action is still in debate. The thing that is not in dispute is that Covid has disrupted the healthcare units. The staff of almost every medical practice is busy taking care of their patients. Therefore, medical practices have opted outsourcing medical billing services from third parties like UControl billing.