Friends and Patients,

The LA Times and KTLA reported on Jan 28 that my medical license had been revoked, though they’ve apparently updated closer to the truer scenario!  Other media around the country picked up the story that I had my license revoked, but many have not corrected the error.

In fact, The Medical Board had ordered my license revoked as of 5pm, Jan 4th.  However, at 4:20pm that day, Judge Harold Kahn in the Superior Court of San Francisco issued a stay of the revocation pending my appeal.  For reasons beyond my control, the written order was not signed in a timely manner, so the Board figured it could ignore the verbal order.  This led to the LA Times article, and all the follow ups.  However, the written order was finally signed by Judge Kahn on the same day the LA Times article came out.

The Administrative Law Judge who ordered the revocation, ruled I had made the wrong diagnosis on a child to whom I issued the cannabis recommendation, and felt that was enough basis to revoke my license “to protect the public.”  He ruled the kid just had tantrums, not mental illness.  I believe I will win on appeal, for a long list of reasons.  One main reason is that the child was given an updated version of the same diagnosis, in a mental hospital on a psychiatric emergency basis, one and a half years after our last visit.  Even the Board’s expert agreed that proves I got the diagnosis right.

Sorry for the shock.  I believe I will prevail.