Fines & Sanctions
Physician Sanctioned For Wrongly Accusing Teen’s Father
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After twice sending the case back to a review panel for further sanctions, the state Medical Examining Board last month accepted a memorandum of decision that imposes probation on a Watertown doctor for making a false accusation against a patient’s father to state child protection authorities. Under the consent order approved by the board, Dr. Mary Jane Brackett is required to complete a health department-approved medical ethics course and record-keeping course and pay a $1,000 fine. The board also placed Brackett’s medical license on probation for six months and required her to hire another doctor to monitor the records of at least five patients for three months, and to take a class with the state Department of Children and Families on mandatory reporting guidelines. At the board’s June and September meetings, members argued that the proposed punishment was too lenient, twice sending the matter back to a review panel. Last month, despite members of the review panel saying an ethics course would not make a difference, the full board asked that a mandatory ethics course be added to the sanctions.