Former Arkansas physician charged in deaths of 3 patients

Federal prosecutors on Aug. 20 charged a former Veterans Affairs pathologist with three counts of involuntary manslaughter in the deaths of three patients, according to The Washington Post.

According to federal prosecutors, Robert Morris Levy, MD, misdiagnosed the three patients and then falsified their medical records to conceal the mistakes. In one case, prosecutors allege a patient died of prostate cancer after Dr. Levy concluded that a biopsy indicated the patient did not have cancer, according to NPR.

Dr. Levy worked at the Veterans Health Care System of the Ozarks in Fayetteville, Ark., until he was fired from the hospital in April 2018, according to CBS News. He was suspended from his job twice for working while impaired before being fired.

In addition to the involuntary manslaughter charges, Dr. Levy also faces multiple charges of fraud and making false statements for allegedly attempting to conceal his substance abuse and incorrect diagnoses, according to CBS News.

A June 2018 review of Dr. Levy's work found more than 3,000 mistakes or misdiagnoses of patients at the veterans hospital dating back more than a decade, according to NPR. The Department of Veterans Affairs told investigators and members of Congress the misdiagnoses were responsible for at least 15 deaths, according to The Washington Post.

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