A cardiothoracic surgeon who helped propel Dr Mehmet Oz, who is currently running for Pennsylvania’s open Senate seat, to stardom said he refused to say publicly that his former colleague had no hand in experiments that allegedly killed more than 300 dogs, claiming he viewed it as the candidate asking for a political favour.
Dr Eric Rose was the chief of cardiac surgery at Columbia University’s medical program and was Dr Oz’s superior during the research he conducted in 2003 that led to the USDA finding the university in violation of the Animal Welfare Act.
The surgeon spoke to The Washington Post and revealed that approximately three weeks ago, Dr Oz contacted him after years of not speaking and asked him to publicly exonerate him for the alleged inhumane treatment of the puppies used in the experiments.
Dr Rose said his relationship with Dr Oz soured approximately three years ago after having been close for decades. He told the paper he opposes Dr Oz’s political views and has donated $165 to his opponent, Pennsylvania Lieutenant Governor John Fetterman‘s, campaign.
He further noted that he refused Dr Oz’s requests, telling the Post that it seemed to him that his former colleague was asking for a political favour.
Mr Fetterman has used the research in attack ads against Dr Oz, frequently referring to him as a "puppy killer."
A spokesperson for Dr Oz’s campaign, Brittany Yanick, confirmed that the call took place.
“Oz reached out to Dr Rose along with several other Doctors to ask for their assistance in setting the record straight,” she said. “Doctors from his time at Columbia offered words of support, and some put their support in writing.”
Dr Rose was not among those offering support; he told the Post that he expressed his disdain for Dr Oz’s politics and for former President Donald Trump. Dr Oz reportedly replied that Mr Trump "isn’t the leader of the party."
"He told me that Mitch McConnell is the leader of the Republican Party," Dr Rose said.
He also claimed that Dr Oz said Republican Doug Mastriano, who is running to become the state’s governor, "won’t win."
Barney Keller, another spokesperson for Dr Oz, rejected those claims, saying the candidate "never said any of those things" and called the Washington Post "irresponsible and frankly pathetic" for attributing the statement to the doctor.
The Post spoke to another former colleague, Dr Charles Stolar, who spoke to Dr Rose shortly after the conversation and corroborated the surgeon’s version of events.
"I can assure you as sure as the sun rises that Eric is not lying," Dr Stolar told the paper.
Dr Rose and Dr Oz’s relationship dates back to at least the early 1990s. He had already secured some amount of fame for perfomring the first successful pediatric heart transplant in 1984. He hired Dr Oz two years later.
The two become heroes in 1996 when they successfully completed a highly-publicised, lifesaving surgery on former Major League Baseball player Frank Torre. The surgery took place during the 1996 World Series, when Mr Torre’s young brother was managing the New York Yankees, who won the series that year.
Dr Rose told The New Yorker in 2013 that the event was Dr Oz’s "first big splash of publicity, and he loved it."
He said at the time he believed it was that event — and Dr Oz’s reception to stardom — that began him down the path of seeking media attention and stardom.
