WCAX.COM Local Vermont News, Weather and Sports-Eye Doctor Stripped of Medical License

Eye Doctor Stripped of Medical License

Montpelier, Vermont - July 21, 2003

A Burlington eye doctor was ordered to stop seeing patients Monday. The emergency action was taken against Doctor David Chase by the Vermont Medical Practice Board. The state claims Dr. Chase was fixing eye exams so patients would have unnecessary cataract surgery, targeting patients over 35 years of age who had no prior cataract troubles.

"And he would have a certain speech for these patients in the target group. And the technician observed the speech was almost verbatim for every patient in this target group and it was a script that was supposed to be followed by a scribe, a person in the room taking down what Dr. Chase was saying," said Assistant Attorney General Joseph Winn.

Much of the state's case is based on a complaint from a former technician in Dr. Chase's office. In her complaint to the state, Amy Landry told investigators that she believed Dr. Chase "crafted records to force patients into cataract surgery".

Chase's lawyer called her a disgruntled employee and said only half of the story is being told.

"I expect as this goes forward you will hear a very different story that shows that Dr. Chase did in fact meet the standard of care and did in fact properly decide when surgery was and was not necessary," said Chase's attorney Eric Miller.

Dr. Chase was willing to stop performing surgery temporarily but he wanted to keep doing other duties at his Burlington office. The state argued it was proper to suspend his license and put a halt to him seeing patients.

"If he is willing to put patients at that risk in an operation. It seems to me he is willing to put them at risk at other situations as well," said Winn.

After deliberating for about ten minutes in seclusion, the medical practice board voted unanimously to suspend Dr. Chase's license immediately putting him out of business for the time being.

Anson Tebbetts - Channel 3 News