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DeWine signs law to protect Ohio patients from sex abuse by docs, but plans to veto another bill

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COLUMBUS, Ohio (Statehouse News Bureau) — Patients will be better protected from sexual abuse by doctors and other medical professionals under a law signed by Gov. Mike DeWine.

And he said he’ll take action on another piece of legislation from lame duck which backers say guarantees “medical free speech”.

Senate Bill 109 would require prosecutors to notify the state medical board and other regulators if a medical professional has been indicted or convicted of sexual battery, and punishes people who know about abuse but don’t report it.

“The state medical board’s highest priority is to protect patients. Our job is not to protect doctors,” said Jonathan Feibel, president of the State Medical Board of Ohio. “I know how vulnerable and trusting patients can be when they need medical attention and are in a time of need. Medical providers who breach the trust of a patient must be held accountable.”

Feibel noted that when he became board president five years ago, his first meeting was an emergency session to deal with information coming out about Richard Strauss, the Ohio State doctor accused of sexually assaulting hundreds of male student athletes in the ‘80s and ‘90s. Some of Strauss’ victims have sued, naming OSU officials who they say knew about the abuse and didn’t report it. The list includes U.S. Rep. Jim Jordan (R-4), a former wrestling coach who has denied any knowledge of Strauss’ attacks on students.

In 2019, a working group convened by DeWine found that in 1996, investigators with the State Medical Board knew that Strauss had been “performing inappropriate genital exams on male students for years,” but didn’t notify law enforcement and the board didn’t move to revoke Strauss’ license. DeWine then called on the State Medical Board to investigate all sexual abuse allegations against medical professionals where no action was taken for the last 25 years. DeWine said they’ve looked into more than 1,200 sexual misconduct complaints against licensed medical professionals from 1994 to 2019.

This bill also requires health care facilities to inform the state medical board within 30 days that they’re launching an investigation into a doctor for sexual or criminal misconduct. Doctors would have to report certain criminal charges to the board within 30 days. The state medical board can suspend a doctor’s license if they receive verifiable information of sexual abuse, and doctors must notify patients in writing if they are on probation for sexual misconduct or patient harm. And the state medical board is authorized to provide victims with status updates about a complaint.

DeWine also said he’ll strike something in what was the lame duck Christmas tree bill, banning regulators from taking action against medical professionals who deal in misinformation.

“I intend to line-item veto that provision. This would totally strip our regulatory boards of authority,” DeWine said.

The state medical board investigated Dr. Sherri Tenpenny after she made false claims about COVID vaccines and magnetism in a House committee in 2021. Her license was suspended for refusing to cooperate in the probe, but it was eventually reinstated.