CRITICAL DEVELOPMENTS IN DR. JONES' CASE:

The Connecticut Medical Board has stepped up its assault on Dr. Jones: they have dug up additional cases which involve divorced or estranged parents fighting over their kids' medical care, and want to add them at this late date to the current charges. The Board also is bringing the father in from Nevada, in the hopes of discrediting his ex-wife, who is the mother of the two children in the current case. It is likely he will try to paint a Munchausen-type picture of her, to negate the powerful testimony that she gave during her appearance at the hearing.

In response to these developments, it is time for the Lyme community to mount a powerful, visible, vocal, yet respectful response. The Connecticut Department of Public Health must hear that Dr. Jones has been a highly valued practitioner whose dedictation and expertise with pediatric Lyme disease has been a blessing and a lifesaver to thousands of children and their families.

It is critically important to support Dr. Jones not only because of his direct contributions to children with tick-borne disease and their families. If the CMB is allowed to prevail, it will pave the way for similar charges to be brought against other physicians who treat Lyme comprehensively in Connecticut and, ultimately, elsewhere. This situation, together with the recent publication of the newly revised, draconian IDSA guidelines, poses another direct threat to availability of appropriate care and patients' right to informed consent in the area of tick-borne disease. The Lyme community must express a unified, coherent and powerful message regarding our presence and determination with regard to these issues.

Additional Developments:

1. The state has made a request to allow the father to testify by telephone; Dr. Jones' attorneys have opposed this request;

2. The state has called another expert witness for the proscecution, Dr. Lawrence Zemel, a pediatric rheumatologist affiliated with Connecticut Children's Medical Center in Hartford, CT.

3. It seems that the Board is determined to add the new cases (mentioned above) to the current charges and proceeding against Dr. Jones.

WHAT TO DO:

1. Attend (any and all) one or both of the upcoming sessions: Offer rides and organize carpools. Bring your family and friends, as well as your children. Some of us who have helped to publicize the previous sessions are going to be away on one or more of the next two hearing dates. This, together with the uncertainty of winter weather conditions, increases our concern about ensuring strong attendance at these next two sessions.

2. Media Coverage: We are now seeking as much media coverage as possible for these hearings - newspapers, TV, etc. Is this an arena that you or anyone you know could help with? Please come forward if you do. Your ideas and contacts are vital!

Due to the short time frame and other factors, we weren't able to generate a formal press release for this set of hearings. We welcome your continued suggestions and assistance in this regard, and hope that ideas for media coverage may be utilized more effectively in the future.

3. Help to spread the word: Please do what you can to support Dr. Jones and to get the word out that attendance is more crucial than ever, etc.

4. Formal Protest: For several reasons, this was not deemed appropriate at the present time. Instead, we have been asked to focus on encouraging strong attendance at the hearings themselves. Please also note the following new addition:

5. Letter Writing Campaign: Folks who support Dr. Jones are encouraged to write letters to Governor Jodi Rell of Connecticut (you may wish to copy Attorney General Blumenthal of Connecticut as well). We hope that this will provide a voice and a vehicle for so many of you who are unable to attend the hearings. Governor Rell maintains a website which you may utilize to email her, instead of or in addition to hard copy letters:

Click here: Governor Rell: Voice Your Opinion - (PMG)
Click here: Governor Rell: Biography of Governor M. Jodi Rell (New)

5. Donations to Dr. Jones' Legal Defense Fund: Due to the comlexity of the case and the issues at hand, the cost of Dr. Jones' legal defense has been quite high. We are lucky that Dr. Jones has promised that he won't quit, that he has assembled a top-notch, committed legal defense team, and is determined to defend both his license and the right to treat Lyme comprehensively. This could entail an even lengthier appeal process and even wind up in civil court. If we want him to prevail, we must remember that his fight is our fight: this is about much more than one physician's medical license.

To donate to the Charles Ray Jones, M.D. Legal Defense Fund, please go to http://www.lymesite.com/Dr-Jones_please_send_a_contribution_to_th.htm

For information on current/ongoing fundraisers for Dr. Jones' legal defense fund, go to http://www.lymesite.com/LLMD_FUNDRAISER.htm

Please continue to check your email for more information and details. Mark your calendars for these two important dates. Thank you for your attention, your ideas and your support!

Sincerely,
Sheila

Sheila M. Statlender, Ph.D.
Clinical Psychologist
53 Langley Road, Suite 330C
Newton Centre, MA 02459
617-965-2329