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A case of physician rights versus public’s right to know

Credentialing Resource Center Connection, October 20, 2004

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In South Carolina, warnings about physicians that a state medical board says might pose a threat to the public have been removed from a state Internet site or ordered kept secret, according to a report in The State.

The newspaper reported that warnings about a Hilton Head cardiologist and a West Columbia family doctor were not disclosed or were removed from the state's official medical Web site after action by the Administrative Law Court. That Web site now lists the two physicians as being "in good standing" -- despite findings by the South Carolina Board of Medical Examiners that their conduct likely threatened the public.

In South Carolina, physicians can nullify, in effect, the medical board's actions by appealing the board's decisions to the Administrative Law Court, the newspaper said. During an appeal, the Law Court can issue gag orders, preventing anyone from talking about cases, and can seal all records.

It can take months or years for an appeal to run its course. Meanwhile, the public is kept in the dark about the medical board's investigation and findings, the newspaper said.

However, that secrecy is being challenged in a case before the South Carolina Supreme Court to determine whether the Law Court can keep secret the medical board's findings of doctor misconduct, The State reported.

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