A Scientologist Quack
Dr. David Minkoff is a quack in Clearwater, Florida who was disciplined by the Florida Board of Medicine after the death of Lisa McPherson, a fellow Scientologist. His license was suspended for one year and he was fined $10,000.
Dr. David Minkoff was also the subject of a lawsuit regarding Lisa McPherson’s death. He paid $100,000 to settle the suit.
Lawsuit Settlement in Wrongful Death
A Clearwater doctor who declared Scientologist Lisa McPherson dead when she arrived at a New Port Richey hospital in December 1995 has paid her estate $100,000 to settle his portion of a wrongful death suit McPherson’s family filed against the Church of Scientology and others.
James Felman, the Tampa lawyer who represents Dr. David Minkoff, said two medical malpractice insurance companies paid the entire amount.
“It wasn’t our idea to settle,” Felman said. “But given that the insurance company is going to pay the money, it is a pittance compared to the millions and millions they were asking for.”
Felman said he doesn’t believe the lawsuit merited the money because McPherson was dead before Minkoff ever saw her at Community Hospital in New Port Richey.
The Scientologists who were taking care of McPherson at the Fort Harrison Hotel in Clearwater drove her to New Port Richey where Minkoff, a Scientologist, was on duty. He had prescribed medication by telephone before her death.
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The wrongful death suit is pending in Hillsborough County Circuit Court against the Church of Scientology and several officials who participated in taking care of McPherson.
Ken Dandar, the Tampa lawyer who represents the McPherson estate, declined to discuss details of the settlement. But he said he agreed to accept Minkoff’s offer because the doctor’s involvement in her death was based on false reports he received from others.
“He saw her after she was dead, so he couldn’t cause any damage to her,” Dandar said. “Dr. Minkoff was extremely nervous and anxious to settle this case.”
McPherson’s family filed suit against Scientology, Minkoff and others in 1997. The suit accuses Scientologists of conspiring to keep McPherson, 36, in isolation inside the Fort Harrison against her will. Instead of calling emergency medical technicians or taking her to nearby Morton Plant Hospital, the Scientologists drove McPherson 45 minutes north to New Port Richey, where Minkoff was on duty.
McPherson was held at the Fort Harrison for 17 days after she was involved in a minor traffic accident. Scientologists say she suddenly fell ill, suggest she had a staph infection and deny holding her against her will.
But Dr. Joan Wood, the medical examiner in Pinellas County, says McPherson died a slow death from a blood clot brought on by dehydration and bed rest. Wood says she went without fluids for several days and was unconscious for up to two days before her death.
In addition to the lawsuit, a criminal investigation into McPherson’s death is ongoing. Pinellas-Pasco State Attorney Bernie McCabe has yet to make a decision about who, if anyone, will be prosecuted. Agents from the Florida Department of Law Enforcement and Clearwater police have recommended filing criminal charges.
McPherson has become the subject of World Wide Web sites where Scientology critics have published autopsy pictures and copies of the care notes taken by Scientologists in the days before she died. Critics also picket Scientology centers all over the world with McPherson’s picture and accusations that Scientology killed her.
More Quackery
It was during David Minkoff’s suspension in 2002 that his own facility, LifeWorks Wellness Center, again made the news as it failed to report the deaths of two patients receiving treatment with a Pap-Ion Magnetic Inductor, or PAP-IMI. The magnetic pulse device was promoted to cure conditions including cancer, AIDS, persistent back pain, chronic fatigue, and allergies. The inventor of the device, Greek mathematics professor Panos Pappas, claimed at the time, “I’m not sure the world is ready to understand the PAP-IMI. It goes beyond known human knowledge.”
If the testimonials on the center’s Facebook page are representative, a large portion of Minkoff’s practice is devoted to the treatment of Lyme disease, or more specifically, chronic Lyme disease.
Dr. David Minkoff operates the LifeWorks Wellness Center in Clearwater, which advertises a number of discredited treatments, such as ozone therapy and homeopathy. He has also been associated with the pseudoscience groups ACAM and Scientology.
References
- Quackwatch: Disciplinary Action against David Minkoff, M.D.
- St. Petersburg Times: Doctor settles his part of wrongful death suit
- Seattle Times: Public never warned about dangerous device
- Tony Ortega on Scientology: What you’ll find on the menu at the clinic run by a physician who’s also a Scientologist
- Scientology Critical Information Directory: David Minkoff
- Florida Board of Medicine: David Minkoff Final Order, Administrative Complaint, and other documents
- California Medical Board: David Minkoff Discipline
- Florida Office of Insurance Regulation: David Minkoff Malpractice Claim
Crypto World Evolution
my mother is going to see this dr. our relationship is strained and i don’t think she’ll hear my concerns. she’s always gone to see quacks but for the first time I am scared.
How did it work out? My mom is trying tk go see this guu.