Casper radiologist Eric Cubin is not giving up his fight to get back on the Wyoming Board of Medicine.
The Liberty Justice Center filed an appeal with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 10th Circuit on Cubin’s behalf Wednesday.
The 53-page appeal requests the 10th Circuit reverse a federal court’s decision and immediately restore Cubin’s position on the board while the case is litigated. The appeal is strictly related to a preliminary injunction to immediately restore Cubin’s position on the board and doesn’t impact the underlying case itself.
“The record in this case is clear: Governor Gordon fired Dr. Cubin from the Wyoming Board of Medicine because he spoke out on legislation,” said Jacob Huebert, president of the Liberty Justice Center, in a statement. “There was no valid justification for the governor’s retaliation.
“It violated Dr. Cubin’s First Amendment rights, so we’re asking the court to order the governor to restore Dr. Cubin to his position.”
The Justice Center believes Cubin “is likely to prevail” on his First Amendment claims.
Cubin’s attorney Jacob Huebert told Cowboy State Daily the reason they’re pushing back on the injunction is because they want to restore Cubin’s position on the board before Gordon replaces him with someone else.
“That’s what’s necessary to get Dr. Cubin’s main relief he seeks,” Huebert said. “We can’t wait for this to be completed through a final judgement because by the time that happens, the governor may have replaced him with someone else and at that point it could be tricky trying to get him back on the board.”
What It’s About
Cubin is the son of former longtime Wyoming congresswoman Barbara Cubin.
He was removed from the Wyoming Board of Medicine in April 2024 after criticizing a medical group and an individual doctor who lobbied against a ban on transgender treatments for minors in 2024.
Cubin lobbied for the ban, and in an email sent to all 93 state legislators slammed the Wyoming Medical Society, of which he is a member, for opposing what was originally known as “Chloe’s Law.”
Under the law, which was signed by Gordon less than a month after Cubin sent his email, the Wyoming Board of Medicine can revoke a physician’s license if he or she has offered any “gender-affirming care” to minors in Wyoming.
Gordon told Cubin he showed an inappropriate bias that could cloud his judgement on the board, or at least give off that perception, and threatened to remove him.
“I believe your comments on this particular legislation could give doctors, who are licensed by the Board of Medicine, a reason to be concerned that you might use your position to advocate for a particular position when considering matters that should be considered absent an agenda or prejudice,” Gordon wrote in his letter to Cubin.
Cubin resigned from the board shortly after, but said he felt pressured into the resignation by Gordon.
Court Time
In August 2024, Cubin filed his lawsuit, arguing that the governor violated his free speech and damaged his reputation. Cubin also said he wasn’t speaking on behalf of the medical board when he wrote his email and would recuse himself in any decision that his fellow board members brought up.
Gordon has argued in court that removing Cubin from the board is protected under qualified immunity and the 11th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution.
The governor also said that he didn’t force Cubin off the board and that it was the doctor himself who resigned. Although this is technically true, Gordon wrote Cubin a letter saying, “I believe it is best to remove you from the Board of Medicine.”
Last November, U.S. District Court Judge Scott Skavdahl rejected Cubin’s request for a preliminary injunction, saying Cubin did not show that he’s likely to win his lawsuit or show that he’ll be irreparably harmed if not restored to the board while his lawsuit is ongoing.
“The real issue here is not that Dr. Cubin expressed his personal support of (Chloe’s Law) to the Wyoming House,” wrote the judge. “Instead, the real issue is that Dr. Cubin’s comments to the Wyoming House went beyond his support for (the bill) and into his disputes with WMS and specific doctors, the same doctors who may appear before the board to answer a complaint with their medical licenses and livelihoods in jeopardy.”
Leo Wolfson can be reached at leo@cowboystatedaily.com.
