A drawn out process to determine whether long embattled Reno gynecologist and obstetrician Samuel Chacon can get his license back as he’s been trying to do for the past two years led to a three-day hearing last week, a moment of which is screenshot here.
The Nevada State Board of Medical Examiners suspended Chacon’s license in 2023 saying he put the “health, safety and welfare of the public at risk of imminent harm.”
Chacon had continued to work at the Women’s Health Center of Reno on W. Plumb Lane until then, despite mounting allegations against him and having previously surrendered his hospital privileges.
Embattled on many fronts, he was also arrested in 2022 as part of a local prostitution sting. He pleaded no contest in 2023 and was mandated to pay a $200 fine and take a course for the city to drop a misdemeanor charge in that matter.
The Nevada Coalition to End Domestic and Sexual Violence has accused him of performing unnecessary surgeries, including hysterectomies, and of botching operations.
During the hearings last week, attention focused on one of the numerous complaints, from a 26-year-old who delivered twins in April 2023. She says Chacon risked their lives by not indicating he already no longer had any medical privileges at any Reno hospitals.
Chacon testified many patients who were on Medicaid were told he had lost his hospital privileges but still chose to stay on as his patients.
His attorney Eric Stryker said Renown had developed a plan for his patients there as Chacon would not be present at the hospital, but the board says those arrangements were never finalized for the mother of twins having a high-risk pregnancy.
Furthermore, that patient has alleged her signature was forged on a document informing her he would not be delivering her babies.
There will be more hearings on other allegations against Chacon in April and May, and a public meeting on his bid to get his license back is expected later this year.
There are additional reports Chacon settled one medical malpractice suit for $500,000 last month, while an FBI investigation against him remains pending.