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Darrell Brett has been fined $20,000 by the Oregon Medical Board in its latest effort to hold the former neurosurgeon accountable for what investigators have described as a series of frauds in the twilight of his career.
Brett’s downfall began, as WW first reported in a cover story earlier this year, when investigators determined he’d been charging $4,700 for $400 urine tests. He eventually agreed to an odd compromise to avoid losing his license: He’d stop accepting payment for his medical services.
That could have been the end of it, but the board then asserted that Brett had found a loophole: He had a “junior partner” bill for him, the board alleged.
Brett had told a patient the other surgeon had been invited to “assist in surgery in order to observe his technique,” the board said. That surgeon then billed for the procedure, which the board ultimately concluded was fraud.
Related: There’s a New Twist in a Neurosurgeon’s Strange Journey
Brett has already paid a $4,000 fine. Now, the board is tacking on $20,000 more.
That’s a major fine, at least by the board’s standards. “The OMB has issued a couple ≥$20,000 civil penalties in the last ~10 years, but it is not common,” writes Elizabeth Ross, the board’s spokeswoman.
Brett has retired and surrendered his medical license, but the board says he may reapply if he’d like in two years. If he does, his application would face stiff scrutiny, Ross says.
“The practice of medicine is a privilege that the Board grants only to applicants who are qualified, competent, and demonstrate good moral character,” she wrote.