The board voted to revoke the license of Katherine Anne Hoover, M.D. who was ordered to five years probation after being accused of asking a teenage patient to have sex with her sons. The doctor has a pain management office on Third Ave. in Williamson and would have lost her license Wednesday.
However, Mingo County Circuit Court Chief Judge Michael Thornsbury agreed to a partial stay of the board’s order. Thornsbury did not grant the motion to remove the board’s order that Hoover must work under a supervisory physician while on probation, and she won’t be allowed to examine patients younger than 18 without a chaperone present. Hoover was placed on probation last October.
Thornsbury did grant the motion to stay the fee imposed by the medical board of $27,430 for “administrative costs” pending an appeal.
The doctor’s problems began with allegations that in 1996, she asked a 17-year-old patient if she or her “cute” girlfriends would come to her home to have sex with her teenage sons. The medical board reports Hoover admitted she talked about her sons with the young girl and even drew a map to her house. But, Hoover denied telling the girl she wanted her to have sex with her sons, according to the board.
The 17-year-old allegedly told Hoover she was having sexual problems. The Board also alleged Hoover told her “not to worry and demonstrated various sexual positions that Hoover and her husband liked.” The medical board further alleged she recommended the book, “ESO: Extended Sexual Orgasm,” to the girl. The board’s order states Hoover admitted she suggested the book to the girl.
For over 12 years the medical board has pursued disciplinary action against Hoover. She worked at the Myers Clinic in Philippi at that time.
On Sept. 11, 2008 the Board decided Hoover had “exercised influence within a patient-physician relationship for the purpose of engaging a patient ; and in the absence of restrictions and conditions, was unqualified to practice medicine and surgery in the state of West Virginia.”
The Board of Medicine previously attempted to re-voke Hoover’s license to practice in 2001. Hoover blocked the order. One year later, a circuit judge re-versed that decision be-cause a board secretary improperly signed the nam-es of board executives on the complaint. The West Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals upheld the ruling.
In 2004, the medical board decided to retry the case against Hoover which resulted in fines and probation.
The $27,430 is an accumulative total of 12 years of lawsuits filed by Hoover against the medical board members. Had Thornsbury not agreed to stay the Board’s decision, Hoover’s license would have been revoked Wednesday. The medical board had given Hoover 30 days from its decision before attempting to revoke her license to provide her “patients a period of time to seek medical care elsewhere.”
The order from the January meeting states, “The stay of revocation of Dr. Hoover’s medical license was dissolved and terminated for her failure to comply with the terms and conditions of the Sept. 11, 2008, order of the board. The revocation is effective at 12:01 a.m., on Feb. 11. The Circuit Court of Mingo County, by ‘order granting motion for partial stay’ entered Jan. 22, stayed the board’s notice of Jan. 12, pending appeal.”
Time.com reported Hoo-ver also nearly lost her license when she practiced medicine in Florida. Form-erly of Key West, Hoover got into trouble with “Florida authorities because she had treated the chronic pain of seven of her 15,000 patients with narcotics. A pain specialist testified at her 1995 hearing that she was practicing within ac-cepted guidelines. But the review board censured her anyway, a decision that was reversed on appeal. Says Hoover, who now practices in West Virginia: ‘There is a belief that anyone who prescribes narcotics is a bad doctor.’”
The Daily News attempted to contact Hoover for a comment but learned the doctor is out of town until next week.
That being said, I am so proud we have a judge looking out for the people of Mingo and Pike County like Judge Thornsbury. (HA! HA!)
So - don't we need more information here? I mean who is right? The writer or the ex-writer? Please...WDN loses more credibility everytime it tries to cover a story. AND...my buds here point out another good point. If this happened so long ago, why is the Williamson Daily News just now telling us about it? Do we really need to know it? Or is it just a good bit of sensationalism to sell papers?
I've got an idea. Report on the dislike between the ex-reporter and the new one. That would make for at least funnier reading since the other stuff is so lame!
Dr. Hoover has not lost her license, she is currently practicing under the supervision of Dr. Teleron and will continue to do so for the entire period of her probation. The ONLY way the board of medicine was going to revoke her license was if she refused to pay the more than $27,000 in alleged administrative costs. She would have paid the money. Her license is worth more to her than $27,000. I have all the board's orders if you would like to read them. I also have a copy of what Judge Michael Thornsbury signed.
By the way Pam, this comment is written in AP style, you should learn to follow it.