Fact Check: Viral Video of Doctor Refusing MAGA Patient Was Staged
Actors performed skit falsely circulated as authentic medical incident
A viral video claiming to show a Black female doctor denying care to a white male patient wearing a MAGA hat has been debunked as staged content. The video, which circulated widely in April 2025, depicted an alleged medical professional telling a patient to remove his 'Make America Great Again' hat if he wanted treatment. Fact-checkers determined the interaction was performed by actors as part of a scripted skit, not a genuine medical encounter.
The misleading clip gained significant traction when shared by social media accounts like Project Constitution on X (formerly Twitter), where many viewers believed it showed an authentic incident. The post, captioned 'UNHINGED FEMALE DOCTOR GOES VIRAL! Denying Healthcare Over A MAGA Hat?' prompted calls for the supposed doctor's medical license to be revoked. The account later acknowledged the video was staged after learning its true nature.
KEY POINTS
- •Doctor-MAGA patient video was staged
- •Actors performed political skit
- •Video edited to avoid detection
Fact-checking organization Lead Stories had previously investigated the video in February when it appeared on TikTok. The male actor wearing the MAGA hat was identified as Thomas Gibson, whose TikTok account features this skit along with other similar content. The female actor portraying the doctor has also appeared in other staged political scenarios, including one where she tears down a Progress Pride Flag in a classroom setting.
The video appears to have been horizontally flipped from its original version, possibly to avoid detection by reverse-image search tools. This modification, combined with its politically charged content referencing President Donald Trump's campaign slogan, likely contributed to its viral spread. The incident highlights the ongoing challenge of distinguishing authentic content from staged political scenarios on social media platforms.
This case represents a pattern of politically divisive staged content being presented as authentic on social media. The video touched on sensitive topics including healthcare access, political expression through Trump-associated merchandise, and racial dynamics between the actors. While the content was fictional, the strong reactions it generated demonstrate how easily staged political content can influence public discourse when presented without proper context.