PHOENIX — ABC15 is bringing back its award-winning investigation ‘Impostors.’
Why?
Fake doctors are still a problem – a big one. And more needs to be done to stop them.
Want examples?
For more than a year, a so-called “doctor" saw dozens of patients in a West Valley psychiatric office that she was able to open and run undetected. The same happened with these “dentists” operating an office in Phoenix.
In the coming days, ABC15 will also expose a man accused of using falsified psychology credentials to evaluate children.
IMPOSTORS: Binge-watch ABC15’s 2018 documentary series
All three cases are from the past few months, and they show Arizona still fails to identify and stop unlicensed medical providers.
“My office is prosecuting these cases, and we are prosecuting more and more of them,” Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes told ABC15 in an exclusive interview to discuss the ongoing problem. “This issue of fake doctors, fake and imposter dentists, fake psychologists and psychiatrists is definitely on the rise.”
Mayes emphasized her office can only prosecute the impostors they know about.
When the Attorney General’s Office finds out, it’s usually because it’s already too late and people have been hurt.
“It’s horrible. And the key is to stop it before it starts. And our system is not doing that. Our State of Arizona and our health boards are broken,” Mayes said.
That broken system is what led ABC15 to begin investigating medical fakes back in 2017. What followed was a two-year investigation that exposed obvious loopholes and a deeply incompetent and indifferent regulatory system that let impostors thrive.
The news reports led to the arrests and convictions of multiple impostors that officials missed or ignored for years.
RELATED: ABC15 investigation exposes impostor doctor running medical clinic
ABC15 also found there had been nearly 130 individuals officially questioned, accused, and/or found to have participated in the unlicensed practice of health from mid-2012 to mid-2018.
The reports also prompted state leaders to pass a new law.
“This reporting uncovered a concerning policy gap in protecting consumers,” former Governor Doug Ducey wrote in his approval of the bill. “This legislation addresses many of these issues and will help better protect Arizona patients and hold bad actors accountable."
The 2019 law required Arizona health boards to:
- Regulate the unauthorized practice of the health field the board oversees.
- Verify complaints of unlicensed practice.
- Retain all records of the complaint and documentation for 10 years.
- Post on boards’ public websites, the names of people who have engaged in unauthorized practice.
- Set the criminal penalty for unauthorized practice to a class 5 felony.
- Refer verified complaints to county attorneys or the Attorney General’s Office.
RELATED: Impostor doctor opened psychiatric clinic, treated dozens of patients
But recent cases show those measures have fallen short when it comes to preventing impostors from opening up legit-looking offices.
ABC15 also discovered some health boards are failing to follow the law’s strict requirements for verification and reporting potential impostors to law enforcement.
Mayes believes the legislature needs to revisit the issue to find additional solutions.
“The legislature needs to better attack it on the front end. We need licensing boards to [be] better funded. And quite frankly we need a change of attitude,” she said.
RELATED: Scottsdale medical imposter busted in undercover ABC15 investigation
Mayes added, “Regulators need to become regulators again. They need to not treat the world of licensed professionals, or the world of unlicensed people, as if they’re customers. They’re not customers of these agencies. They are to be regulated.”
The Attorney General’s Office has civil attorneys assigned to the boards to provide legal advice.
When ABC15 asked if her office needs to reeducate boards about their requirements under the law, she agreed.
“Yeah. I think so. I think we need to re-up that message through our attorneys,” Mayes said.
RELATED: ABC15 exposes Valley 'anesthesiologist' who used fake credentials
In advance of the relaunch of our Impostors series, ABC15 reached out to the Governor’s Office, spokespeople for Republicans and Democrats at the state legislature, the Arizona Department of Health Services, and the Attorney General’s Office to ask if they had any solutions to better identify and stop impostors before they’re able to open up shop.
Only Mayes provided ideas.
The Attorney General’s main solution: A centralized registry for licensed professionals that is easier and quicker to use for the public.
Right now, many boards keep their own lists of licensed professionals on their websites — and very few include photos.
ABC15 has exposed several impostors who stole real practitioners’ identities to treat patients.
Mayes agreed when asked if photos should be required.
“I think that’s a fair point. We probably do need facial ID. We need stronger identification," she said. “We need a central registry. But I really do think we need the legislature to fund these agencies. Because that kind of thing requires funding.”
RELATED: Man warns of unlicensed 'clinical psychologist'
No one from the Governor’s Office or the state legislature responded to ABC15’s request for solutions.
A spokesperson from the Arizona Department of Health Services provided a lengthy statement, which thanked ABC15 for bringing “awareness” to the problem.
The health department’s statement did not offer solutions but instead provided information about how the system currently works. It said, in part: “As criminals find new ways to lie, cheat, and steal from unsuspecting Arizonans, we will continue to amend our policies and procedures to deter and detect illegal behaviors.”
But in the recent cases, the fact patterns closely mirror past cases.
The circumstances – and the problem of impostors – aren’t new.
“We need [the health department], the license boards, all the regulators to do their jobs,” Mayes said. “It’s not a gray area. I think it’s something everyone should want to get behind and get together to try to address.”
[Editor’s note: In one of the videos previously attached to this report, it inaccurately stated Arizona’s previous dental board director was fired. She retired unexpectedly following an ABC15 investigation and while under scrutiny from the Governor’s Office.]
In the coming months, ABC15 Investigators Dave Biscobing and Anne Ryman will be investigating how state officials have handled impostor cases in recent years. If you have a tip, you can reach Dave and Anne at investigators@abc15.com.
