Fact Check

Did the President Sign an Order Prohibiting Emergency Room Visits for Colds?

President Trump signed a large number of executive orders during the first weeks of his administration — but not this one.

Published Feb. 1, 2017

Claim:
President Trump signed an Executive Order prohibiting ER visits for patients complaining solely of a cold.

On 30 January 2017, medical satire site GomerBlog.com published a story reporting that United States President Donald Trump had signed an executive order prohibiting emergency room visits for patients complaining of a cold:

The executive orders (EO) just keep coming. President Donald Trump just signed an EO stating: “No one is allowed to go to the Emergency Room with a cold.” What?! Is he building a wall around the hospitals? Then he has the audacity to not only limit these miserable citizens from the care they need, but he tells them in the EO that “Antibiotics will not work.”

GomerBlog does have a page that explains what they are all about:

Welcome to the disclaimer page! You found it because you were either bored or thought one of the posts were true! Either way this should explain some things. Gomerblog.com is strictly a satirical and fake news blog site. All articles are fake and not intended to diagnosis medical conditions or to give medical advice. Please see a real medical website or your doctor for diagnosis and any medical advice. Please don't take any advice from our website.

"GOMER" is an acronym for "Get Out of My Emergency Room," and GomerBlog's targeted satire occasionally baffles and confounds people who do not work in the medical field. Previous instances of this include a satirical take on strict nurse's station rules, and claims about the Food and Drug Administration approving an "Ativan diffuser" for the benefit of both staff and patients in a hospital.

Kim LaCapria is a former writer for Snopes.