Testimony on Patient Safety Bill (House Bill 2106)
Good morning. I’m Dr. Mark Piasio, president of the Pennsylvania Medical Society and a practicing orthopedic surgeon from Dubois.
Let me begin by thanking Chairman Gannon and the rest of this committee for inviting the Pennsylvania Medical Society to testify.
Today, the Pennsylvania Medical Society is here to discuss House Bill 2106, a bill designed to protect consumers by punishing those individuals who impersonate the holder of a professional or occupational license.
This is a particularly useful bill for patients to help protect their safety.
As it would relate to health care, in general, when the public hears the word “doctor,” they tend to think “physician.” In fact, even the Associated Press stylebook highlights this fact and cautions reporters to use care when writing “Dr.”
But, due to advanced academic degrees, it’s easy for many people to use “Dr.” in front of their names. Many have worked years towards advanced degrees to earn this privilege. Unfortunately, when used inappropriately by not clearly identifying the type of doctor the person is, it’s easy for a patient to think he’s seeing a medical doctor when, in fact, he may not be.
The Pennsylvania Medical Society does not take kindly to those who are not MDs or DOs working with patients who believe they are being treated by a physician, but are actually being treated by a non-physician with an advanced health care degree. This is misrepresentation and might not meet the expectations of the patient. All patients within a health care setting should be able to clearly identify medical doctors by appropriate use of “Dr.” in front of a name.
But an even worse situation is where people, who don’t even hold advanced degrees, or may have absolutely no health care qualifications, pretend to be a medical doctor for criminal intent.
Today, in order to practice medicine in Pennsylvania, a graduate of a medical school who has earned an MD or a DO must be licensed by the State Board of Medicine or the State Board of Osteopathic Medicine, respectively. Together both boards work to ensure the public that only qualified individuals are given the right to practice medicine in our state.
HB 2106 defines an offense as falsely pretending to hold a professional or occupational license issued by a licensing board. The bill also defines an offense as performing any act in furtherance of the false pretense.
While I doubt that you would have many people off the street pretending to be a medical doctor, nonetheless, there will be some.
And, in fact, a quick Google search will bring up examples of abuse that have already happened.
For example consider the case of Gerald Barnbaum, who, according to a May 2004 story in the San Diego Union-Tribune, was pretending to be Dr. Gerald Barnes in order to get a job at a Los Angeles clinic. The newspaper reported that this was Mr. Barnbaum’s fourth conviction for impersonating a medical doctor, and in at least one situation, he caused the death of a patient.
People have even posed as doctors to trick women for sexual pleasure, such as the case of Philip Wikikoff, who according to the Miami Herald was arrested earlier this year in Florida after going door-to-door impersonating a doctor and offering free breast exams. Two women fell for the trick.
A little bit closer to home, sometimes individuals will pose as medical doctors to gain access to drugs, such as an accused Schuylkill County man who pretended to be a doctor to get valium, as reported in a March 2005 story appearing on WGAL TV’s website.
So, this bill is unfortunately necessary.
It will help protect patients by making such an act at least a misdemeanor of the second degree. Plus, if there is intent to harm or defraud a person, the impersonator could face a felony of the third degree. The bill may not stop all desperate criminals, but at least it will set punishments that could provide a harsh reality check for them.
Quite possibly, this bill is also helpful to clear up patient confusion in determining who is a medical doctor and who is a health care professional with a non-medical doctorate degree.
For these reasons, the Pennsylvania Medical Society supports HB 2106. Our organization believes this is a good step in protecting the interests of consumers and addressing confusion that sometimes exist when using the word “doctor.”
While I’m here, I’d like to take a moment to make a brief statement on House Bill 2107, which would punish a physician for a sexual assault during a professional relationship.
HB 2107 makes this sexual offense a misdemeanor of the first degree.
Pennsylvania already has in place laws to punish any citizen guilty of a sexual assault, and in fact we would point out that the physician-specific provisions in the licensure law are more stringent than those proposed in HB 2107. It would be impossible to understate the importance of those protections. However, in this instance it may not be the best idea to make a one-size-fits-all statute. We would be glad to work with the committee to review the specific language in the licensure statutes of all the health care professions and discuss further the best means to assure the appropriate protections.
In conclusion, the Pennsylvania Medical Society again thanks Chairman Gannon and the members of this committee for allowing us to testify here today.
Last Updated: 8/14/2008