Dr. Linda Marraccini (pictured), who has said she will no longer treat unvaccinated patients in person starting September 15, denies she is in breach of her Hippocratic Oath
A Florida doctor who declared that she will no longer treat patients face-to-face if they are unvaccinated against Covid-19 insists that she's not in breach of her Hippocratic Oath.
Dr. Linda Marraccini, whose practice is based in South Miami, sent a letter to her patients last month stating that from September 15 she will only treat unvaccinated patients online through virtual appointments.
Marraccini insists that the policy is not in violation of the Hippocratic Oath, a medical code of ethics requiring doctors to treat the sick to the best of one's ability.
'The Hippocratic Oath is very science-based,' she told Newsweek. 'I am following the science. I'm applying this to the benefit of the sick.'
While Marraccini says the decision was motivated by science and not politics, she remarked that individuals had the responsibility to help end the pandemic by getting vaccinated, telling Newsweek that it, 'did not have to go on this long.'
'Responsibility has to do with each individual,' Marraccini added. 'This is a global health issue, and everyone owns part of that responsibility.'
Marraccini announced the new policy in a letter she sent to her patients last month
Around 53.5 percent of Florida's total population has been vaccinated
Marraccini says that she made the decision with her oath in mind, with the intent to protect the most vulnerable of her patients, whom she was fearful could be exposed to the virus at her office.
She also added that she is willing to make exceptions for people who are unable to get vaccinated or those who just need prescriptions filled, the outlet reported.
'We're not going to leave them out there in the cold,' she proclaimed.
'It's not fair for people who are unvaccinated to harm other people,' observes Marraccini, who told Newsweek she had seen patients in person throughout the coronavirus pandemic.
Once the policy goes into effect, she says, patients who refuse to get vaccinated will have to choose between opting for remote telemedicine treatment or finding another primary care doctor.
The change comes amid the state's worst coronavirus outbreak since the start of the pandemic, driven largely by the spread of the Indian delta variant.
Marraccini's policy comes as Florida sees its worst coronavirus outbreak since the start of the pandemic
