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BOISE, Idaho (AP) — A Boise chiropractor whose patients say he mistreated them and prescribed unnecessary treatments is appealing disciplinary action handed down by a state oversight board.
The Idaho Statesman reports (http://bit.ly/1LHWdAG) the Idaho Board of Chiropractic Physicians in March suspended Laverle Breshears's license for 60 days in a decision released in March, years after the first complaint against him was made in 2009.
Breshears accusations include diagnosing an 85-year-old woman complaining of a back pain with a yeast infection — prescribing her with nutritional supplements— when she actually had breast cancer. In another case, a 9-year-old patient came to Breshears for attention deficit disorder, but ended up with five years of spinal adjustments and no record of improvement. Another woman spent 11 months doing exercises because Breshears told her they would help regrow cartilage in her hip.
Breshears is appealing the decision, which also requires a year of probation and payment of a $2,000 fine. He is being required to retake examinations and pay at least $35,000 in costs associated with the case.
Lawrence E. Kirkendall is representing Breshears in the appeal and says he advised his client not to comment.
"What I can disclose is that a majority of the charges were dismissed after hearing," Kirkendall wrote via email. "The remaining charges are pending appeal, and we remain optimistic that we will obtain justice for Dr. Breshears."
Mary Jo White, chair of the state's chiropractor board, also declined to comment on the case.
According to 2009 records from the chiropractor board, Breshears was flagged as not meeting professional standards that the board did not change.
Idaho's Bureau of Occupational Licenses oversees all complaints and investigations for the state's 28 licensing boards. The board declined to answer questions about why it took four years to bring a formal complaint against Breshears.
"The bureau generally opens a case within a day or two of receiving the complaint," wrote Dawn hall, the bureau's administrative support manager, in a statement. "Each case is different, so there is no set timeline" for moving forward with discipline or deciding to close a case. "The bureau's goal is to have all cases investigated within a year after they are received."
Hall added that the bureau currently has 11 investigators. The Idaho Legislature approved adding three of those jobs to help keep up with backlogs.
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Information from: Idaho Statesman, http://www.idahostatesman.com
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