Examples of Recent Disciplinary Actions by the North Carolina Medical Board

Among its many roles, the North Carolina Medical Board is tasked with conducting disciplinary proceedings and imposing disciplinary action for physicians who fail to meet their professional responsibilities. If you are facing disciplinary action by the North Carolina Medical Board (the “Board”), you need to take your situation extremely seriously. The Board has broad authority to impose sanctions for professional misconduct -- sanctions that can include revocation of your medical license.

Recent License Revocations and Suspensions by the North Carolina Medical Board

The following are some examples of recent disciplinary actions by the North Carolina Medical Board:

License Suspended Indefinitely Due to Arrest for Driving While Impaired (DWI)

In July, the North Carolina Medical Board ordered an indefinite license suspension for an experienced physician due to his arrest for driving while impaired (DWI) and simple possession of a controlled substance. The physician was found stopped on the side of the road, “extremely impaired” and in possession of a number of controlled prescription medications without a valid prescription.

Following his arrest, the physician inactivated his license and refused to meet with anyone from the Board. The Board indefinitely suspended his license in his absence, citing N.C. Gen. Stat. § 90-14(a)(5) (authorizing suspension based upon “[b]eing unable to practice medicine with reasonable skill and safety to patients by reason of illness, drunkenness, excessive use of alcohol, drugs, chemicals, or any other type of material”).

License Revoked for Health Care Fraud Conviction

Also in July, the Board issued a notice of revocation to a physician who had been convicted on two counts of felony health care fraud in federal court. Under N.C. Gen. Stat. § 90-14(c), a felony conviction results in automatic license revocation unless the disciplined physician requests a hearing within 60 days of receiving the notice of revocation from the Board.

False Statements on Application Result in License Annulment

In May, a physician who was newly-licensed in North Carolina had his license annulled after the Board discovered that he had failed to disclose material information and made false representations on his license application. Specifically, in his application, the physician withheld information that he was currently under investigation by another state medical board and that he had resigned his prior license during the pending investigation. He also failed to notify the Board when the other state’s medical board ultimately issued a suspension.

The Board annulled the physician’s license pursuant to N.C. Gen. Stat. § 90-14(a)(3), which prohibits making “false statements or representations to the Board, or willfully conceal[ing] from the Board material information in connection with an application for a license.”

For more examples of recent disciplinary actions, you can visit the North Carolina Medical Board’s Board Actions Archive.

Contact a Raleigh Professional License Defense Attorney at Cheshire Parker Schneider & Bryan, PLLC

The professional license defense lawyers at Cheshire Parker Schneider & Bryan, PLLC provide experienced representation for physicians facing disciplinary action by the North Carolina Medical Board. To discuss your case in confidence, call our Raleigh, NC law offices at (919) 833-3114 or request a consultation online today.