Horwitz v. State Board of Medical Examiners

822 F.2d 1508
CourtCourt of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit
DecidedJuly 7, 1987
DocketNo. 85-2448
StatusPublished
Cited by10 cases

This text of 822 F.2d 1508 (Horwitz v. State Board of Medical Examiners) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Horwitz v. State Board of Medical Examiners, 822 F.2d 1508 (10th Cir. 1987).

Opinion

BARRETT, Circuit Judge.

The issue presented on this appeal is whether members of the Colorado State Board of Medical Examiners, sued individually for damages for alleged deprivation of plaintiff-appellant’s civil rights, are entitled to absolute immunity or qualified immunity. The district court, in granting defendants-appellees’ motion for summary judgment, ruled that because the defendants performed functions comparable to those of a court of law when they ordered the suspension of plaintiff’s license to practice medicine in Colorado, they were entitled to absolute immunity. We agree.

Background

Plaintiff-appellant, Lenord D. Horwitz, D.P.M., hereinafter referred to either as plaintiff or Dr. Horwitz, was licensed to practice podiatry in Colorado in 1964.

During the period 1970-1983, some sixteen charges of unprofessional conduct were filed against Dr. Horwitz with the State Board of Medical Examiners of the State of Colorado (the Board), which is the state body empowered to license physicians and to take disciplinary action against them. Fifteen of the sixteen charges had been initiated by the Board. Prior to July 15, 1983, after two evidentiary hearings involving fourteen of the charges, the hearing panel of the Board found that Dr. Horwitz had not violated any provision of the Podiatry Act, C.R.S. 12-32-107, as amended. On July 15, 1983, Dr. Horwitz and the Board entered into a Stipulation whereby the Board agreed to dismiss with prejudice the two remaining charges of unprofessional conduct lodged against Dr. Horwitz in consideration of Dr. Horwitz’s agreement to allow his surgical practice to be supervised by an ambulatory foot surgeon and his record keeping practice to be supervised by a podiatrist. One Dr. Stephen Albert was appointed by the Board to serve as supervisor for both record keeping and surgery.

Dr. Albert submitted reports to the Board prior to December 1,1983, indicating that certain records kept by Dr. Horwitz had been deficient, but that Dr. Horwitz had undertaken corrective measures. Dr. Albert did not submit any negative reports relative to Dr. Horwitz’s surgical practice. Also, on the same day, Dr. Albert and Dr. Horwitz met with the hearing panel of the Board relative to why Dr. Albert had supervised only a limited number of Dr. Horwitz’s surgical practices. During the course of this meeting, out of the presence of Dr. Horwitz, Dr. Albert expressed con[1510]*1510cern about the quality of Dr. Horwitz’s surgical practice, and stated his belief that Dr. Horwitz was a danger to the public. The inquiry panel thereafter met with Dr. Horwitz and his attorney relative to reasons why the number of surgical supervisions set forth in the Stipulation had not occurred. No reference was made to Dr. Albert’s complaints about Dr. Horwitz’s surgical practice. Following Dr. Horwitz's departure from the meeting, the hearing panel voted to summarily suspend Dr. Horwitz’s license to practice podiatry in Colorado and instructed the office of the Attorney General to prepare a formal complaint.

The Board’s order of December 21, 1983, was based both on oral and written reports submitted by Dr. Albert to the Board and it contained a finding required under C.R.S. § 24-4-104(4) that the Board had reasonable grounds to believe that Dr. Horwitz’s practice of podiatry constituted a threat to his present and future patients, and therefore to the public health, safety and welfare such as to imperatively require emergency action. On that same day, the Board filed its formal complaint and on January 4, 1984, Dr. Horwitz was served with the Order of Summary Suspension and Formal Complaint. Dr. Horwitz submitted his written response on January 5, 1984, but continued to practice podiatry until restrained from doing so by order of the District Court for the City and County of Denver on January 9, 1984. Within fifteen days of Dr. Horwitz’s response and within ten days of the issuance of the temporary restraining order, a full evidentiary hearing before a qualified hearing officer was held. Dr. Horwitz was represented by counsel and was afforded full opportunity to present evidence, express his positions and to fully cross-examine all witnesses.

On February 6, 1984, the hearing officer rendered his decision. He found in Dr. Horwitz’s favor on forty-two (42) of the forty-four (44) allegations and also found against him on two charges, which he identified as relatively minor. The hearing officer recommended that Dr. Horwitz’s license to practice podiatry be immediately reinstated, subject to his completion of the supervision previously agreed upon. Thereafter, the hearing panel and the inquiry panel of the Board denied Dr. Horwitz’s application for reinstatement, and on May 1, 1984, the hearing panel, following review of the hearing transcript, entered its Final Order which in part affirmed the hearing officer’s decision, in part modified the decision and in part included independent findings. The Order placed Dr. Horwitz on a one-year probation, subject to supervision. It also imposed certain requirements.

Litigation

Dr. Horwitz filed this action pursuant to 42 U.S.C. §§ 1983 and 1988 against the State Board of Medical Examiners and its then current members. He sought compensatory and punitive damages, together with attorney’s fees, alleging that he had been subjected to unfounded complaints, summarily suspended from the practice of podiatry in violation of his Fourteenth Amendment due process rights, and defamed and subjected to outrageous conduct. The Board was dismissed from the suit by virtue of the State’s claim of sovereign immunity invoked pursuant to the Eleventh Amendment. That ruling is not challenged on appeal.

Prior to filing the instant action, Dr. Horwitz appealed the Board’s Final Order to the Colorado Court of Appeals, seeking review of the action summarily suspending his license. The due process contentions advanced here were presented there. The court rejected the due process contentions and bad faith allegations. The court affirmed the Board’s order except for the probationary requirement that Dr. Horwitz complete courses in anesthetics and aseptics. Dr. Horwitz filed a petition for rehearing and after its denial he filed a petition for writ of certiorari with the Colorado Supreme Court. This, too, was denied.

Functions of the Board

The Board is a statutory body whose eleven members are appointed by the governor. C.R.S. § 12-36-103(1). Its powers, duties and functions are set forth in the [1511]*1511Colorado Medical Practices Act, C.R.S. § 12-36-101, et seq. (1973 as amended) and the Colorado Administrative Procedure Act, C.R.S. § 24-4-101, et seq. (1973 as amended).

Broad judicial and prosecutorial powers of the Board are set forth in C.R.S. § 12-36-104, while Board procedures required for disciplinary proceedings are set forth in C.R.S. § 12-36-118. The Board consists of a president and ten members, two of whom are from the public at large, nine of whom are licensed physicians. The president divides the members into two panels for disciplinary action, each panel consisting of at least four physician members. Each panel serves as both an inquiry panel and a hearing panel.

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822 F.2d 1508, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/horwitz-v-state-board-of-medical-examiners-ca10-1987.