CBS 42 Texas Investigates:
The Texas Board of Medical Examiners is the state agency that oversees doctors in Texas. It's supposed to protect the public from bad doctors.
But some say the board isn't doing its job.
Tuesday the Texas House Appropriations Committee will be hearing from doctors and others who say the medical board wastes valuable time and resources going after doctors for minor record keeping violations instead of doctors who pose a risk to patients.
CBS 42's Nanci Wilson talked to some of the medical board's most outspoken critics in this installment of CBS 42 News Investigates.
Steven Hotze has a thriving medical practice in Houston. But lately, he's trying to change a different practice.
"The Texas Medical Board needs to be reformed," Hotze said.
He says he thought the medical board was supposed to go after dangerous doctors.
"I personally had an anonymous complaint filed against me for advertising," he said. "I have a radio program I have had every day for the last seven years. I wrote a book, Hormones, health, and happiness. Some competitor complained, and I've got to hire attorneys, go to the board hearings. I saw the way we were treated -- like criminals. "
The board dismissed the complaint against him, but he still had to pay thousands in legal fees.
"I started hearing horror stories from other doctors," Hotze said. "Their licenses being revoked and the intimidation tactics that were used."
That's when he created a web site to draw attention to the issue. And he's the first of many doctors expected to testify before the House Appropriations Committee on Tuesday.
"It's egregious," Hotze said. "It's wrong and it should be stopped. The board is really out of control."
During the last meeting in August, the medical board disciplined 88 doctors.
Seven surrendered their licenses.
Twenty-four were cited for quality of care issues -- unprofessional conduct -- problems with drugs or alcohol, and non-therapeutic prescribing.
But more than half -- 49 doctors -- were disciplined for things like violating board rules, inadequate medical records, advertising or other minimal violations.
Hotze says this is typical.
"Once legislators were made aware of it, some had heard of this from their doctors," Hotze said. "They said things have got to stop. We have to reform the board."
Hotze says the Texas Medical Board needs to focus on its mission.
"They ought to be helping with licensing," Hotze said. "And then those doctors that are drug addicts, those who are alcoholics or sex abusers -- get rid of them. That's what they ought to be doing."
But he says, they are not.
One example -- psychiatrist Gregory Vagshenian.
You may remember back in 2004, he was convicted of nine charges of assault.
During the trial three former patients described how he molested them when he practiced at the VA center in Austin.
And according to the medical board records, nine of his other patients made similar accusations.
Vagshenian denies he did anything wrong.
This wasn't the first time he was accused of sexual misconduct.
In April of 1990 he was arrested in Redwood City, California for solicitation of a lewd act.
He was convicted and, after serving probation, his record was expunged with the understanding that he would disclose the arrest if he applied for any license.
But in 1993 when he applied for a medical license in Texas, he checked "no" when asked if he had ever been arrested or convicted.
He also didn't disclose his second arrest in September of 1990 for solicitation of a lewd act in San Francisco.
When the allegations surfaced about his practice at the VA center -- the Texas Medical Board suspended his license. But it was reinstated -- soon after he was convicted -- with the restriction that he have no direct contact with patients.
A year and a half later -- the medical board lifted that restriction and ruled he could start seeing patients again as long as it's limited to the military.
That's not likely though. He's banned from practicing in any federal healthcare programs.
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