The Karnataka government on Tuesday asked doctors to exercise caution while giving statements to the media on Covid-19.
This comes as contradicting statements were made by practitioners in a few instances. In a media statement, the Commissionerate of Health and Family Services said some medical practitioners were allegedly giving incomplete, inaccurate, and unsubstantiated information about Covid-19.
#Karnataka Government asks doctors to exercise caution while giving media statements about #COVID19. @KiranParashar21 pic.twitter.com/ucQDQMAsPB
— Darshan Devaiah B P (@DarshanDevaiahB) January 18, 2022
“Such misinformation leads to confusion in public at large on the prevailing Covid scenario in the state and encourages them to deviate from well laid out guidelines issued by the health and revenue authorities,” the statement said.
The health department asked medical professionals to exercise utmost care and caution while communicating with the public on Covid-19 and to refer to the government guidelines, circulars, and orders thoroughly before appearing on any media or social platform.
“Any misinformation or non-factual data on Covid-19 shared on such platforms would be deemed as an offense and necessary action would be initiated as per section 54 of Disaster Management Act, 2005 and section 4(K) of Karnataka Epidemic Disease Act, 2020,” the commissionerate added in its statement.
Karnataka on Monday recorded 27,156 new Covid-19 cases and 14 deaths. The test positivity rate dropped to 12.45 per cent. Bengaluru alone logged 15,947 new cases and five deaths. The active cases in the state stood at 2,17,297.