John Oliver, host of HBO’s “Last Week Tonight,” is under fire. He is currently in a defamation lawsuit with Dr. Brian Morley, a healthcare executive. The lawsuit seeks damages in at least $75,000. It calls on federal regulators to revisit their interpretation of a Medicaid-related statutory provision. Dr. Morley alleges, in his complaint, that Oliver doctored his comments and that such misrepresentation has damaged Dr. Morley’s reputation.
Unfortunately, the episode in question that aired on October 22, 2023 mistakenly focused on the repercussions of Medicaid cuts taking place across the state of Iowa. During the segment, John Oliver played audio from a hearing where Dr. Morley testified about the care of patients with bowel issues. As Dr. Morley reflected in his testimony, patients should not be “dirty for a few days.” He thinks that kind of thing is fine. Oliver used this testimony as an opportunity to show the dangerous ramifications of cutting Medicaid services on those most vulnerable.
The joint interview with Louis Facenda Jr., who has cerebral palsy, and his mother, Joann, highlighted the struggles faced by those with disabilities. Facenda’s in-home care program was disrupted due to cuts in Iowa’s Medicaid services, prompting Oliver to label the situation as a “disgrace.”
Dr. Morley’s lawsuit alleges that Oliver’s portrayal of his comments was defamatory, claiming the host’s commentary incited outrage among viewers. The allegations accompanying the suit claim that, “Defendants’ defamatory statements were intended to incite public outrage, and they certainly did.”
The legal action taken against Oliver is hardly unprecedented. As mentioned in the Times article, “Last Week Tonight” has a history of legal actions against the Emmy-winning program, most famously by coal CEO Bob Murray. A West Virginia judge finally threw out that test case in 2017.
Oliver’s response to the lawsuit has been unrestrained. He went on to express his incredulity over Dr. Morley’s first proclamation in the rebuttal section of the episode. Honestly, when I first heard that, I thought that had to be the conversation that was taken out of context. There’s no chance that a board-certified physician would ever say that it’s okay for people to sit in their own poop for days,” he announced.
He further elaborated on his feelings regarding the medical professional’s comments, saying, “So, we got the full hearing, and I’m not going to play it for you, I’m just going to tell you: he said it, he meant it, and it made me want to punch a hole in the wall.”
Oliver’s colorful, sometimes profane, language to call out Dr. Morley’s misleading claims has made quite the stir. And then he said, “If I had to be honest, I’d say fuck you, rusty canoe to that doctor! And later with fire and fury, he exclaimed, I pray that son of a bitch gets tetanus in the balls! He unapologetically stood behind his use of inflammatory language. And he feels entirely justified in sharing his outrage on the subject.
Dr. Morley’s original quote from the hearing highlighted his view on patient hygiene: “In certain cases, yes, with the patient with significant comorbidities, you would want to have someone wiping them and getting the feces off. We have all either seen, witnessed, or experienced this situation—regardless of gender, sex, or daily stool rate to trot ratio. We typically don’t toot our own horn. People are allowed to be dirty.
The lawsuit highlights free speech issues and the dangers of interpreting public figures’ statements in the press. It shows the hard reality of what happens when media representation meets personal accountability in the workplace.
As this legal battle unfolds, it is clear that the discourse surrounding Medicaid services and patient care continues to evoke strong emotions from various stakeholders. Whether it’s John Oliver or Dr. Morley from the physician’s daily, they are both on opposite sides of the extreme that is shaping U.S. healthcare today.