Prison psychiatrist David Hoban surrenders license following fraud conviction

January 10, 2012

Dr. David Hoban has surrendered his license to the State Medical Board of California, closing the book on an accusation that he fraudulently billed the state for 242 hours while he was chief psychiatrist at Salinas Valley State Prison.

He signed the paperwork just before Christmas; the medical board approved it Dec. 28.

"I'm 68, I decided to retire," said Hoban, a 1969 Temple University School of Medicine graduate who had an office on Riverside Drive. "I was doing a good thing and it turned into a bad thing."

He said he could not comment further.

Medical care at California's prisons has been supervised by a federally appointed receiver for six years after a court decision that medical services for inmates did not meet constitutional standards.

In November 2008, an indictment was filed against six doctors including Hoban in Monterey County Superior Court alleging the state prison was overbilled by $160,000. At the time, the attorney representing the Salinas Valley prison's medical chief said his client had inherited a dysfunctional operation and was trying to improve services to inmates; charges against the prison medical chief were later dismissed.

The indictment alleged eight felony violations and charged Hoban conspired with others to defraud the state out of $60,000.

It alleged that Hoban falsified prison exit logs on 15 occasions between March 1 and June 30 of 2007, writing down a later time rather than the time he actually left the grounds. Investigators said he treated inmates for a few hours but submitted time sheets indicating he worked a full day.

Shortly before Christmas 2009, the charges were reduced and Hoban pleaded no contest to overbilling the state $42,000.

The next month, the court reduced the single felony conviction to a misdemeanor and sentenced Hoban to 300 hours of community service, completion of a theft offender class and making restitution of $42,000 to the state.

Six months later, the medical board accused Hoban of unprofessional conduct.

Hoban contested the accusation, which alleged he signed documents related to the practice of medicine that falsely represented the facts.

He was represented by Sacramento attorney Robert Zaro.

In July, Hoban signed a settlement and disciplinary order in which he admitted the truth of the accusation and agreed to be placed on probation for five years. The disciplinary order, which took effect Sept. 30, suspended his practice for 135 days.

It required him to take an ethics course within 60 days and obtain the services of a physician to monitor his billing for patient services and provide quarterly reports to the medical board.

It also required him to provide a copy of the medical board actions to every hospital where he had privileges and to every insurer providing him with malpractice insurance coverage.

Hoban volunteered at a homeless center and at a veterans center to fulfill his community service requirement.

Source: Jondi Gumz, "Dr. David Hoban, Santa Cruz psychiatrist, turns in his license, closing overbilling case," Santa Cruz Sentinel, January 9, 2012.