Four cases, all unresolved

The Department of Health has spent eight years building four cases against Dr. Fred Liebowitz, but has yet to resolve any of them.

All the while, he’s continued to write prescriptions from his Fort Myers pain clinic.

The state’s cases accuse Liebowitz of mishandling painkiller prescriptions for 13 patients. One of them was Michael Moore, 51, who was found dead on the floor of a Fort Myers hotel room, near methadone pills and a prescription from Liebowitz. A medical examiner ruled his 2009 death an accidental overdose by methadone and clonazepam, used to treat anxiety.

Liebowitz prescribed oxycodone, methadone and clonazepam to Moore, despite records showing his patient had a history of drug abuse and that he was likely taking more medication than he was supposed to, the health department said when it charged the doctor.

The state’s prosecution of Liebowitz raises questions about the health department’s urgency in prosecuting doctors — even for those who have racked up multiple allegations.

State health regulators have said cases take time because of the difficulty of tracking down witnesses and navigating complicated medical issues. But the state waited more than two years to ask Liebowitz to correct incomplete paperwork. Once they did, he addressed the issue within three weeks.

That was in May. Still, the cases against Liebowitz sit idle, waiting to be sent to the Florida Division of Administrative Hearings, said Brad Dalton, a health department spokesman. Cases are sent there to be heard by a judge when a doctor disputes the state’s allegations. Dalton did not answer questions about why the cases have not yet been sent to the division for a formal hearing or why the paperwork error was unaddressed for two years.

“Every health care licensee is afforded due process rights under the law,” he said.

Liebowitz, 57, did not respond to requests seeking comment.

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