LEWISTON — For the third time in 12 years, the state’s medical licensing board has imposed restrictions on a local neurologist for substance use or abuse.

Daniel Bobker most recently worked as a neurologist for Central Maine Healthcare, but a health system spokeswoman said Monday he is no longer employed there.

The Maine Board of Licensure in Medicine suspended Bobker’s medical license in August, pending a hearing on claims he had been fraudulently calling in prescriptions for his girlfriend for months and was getting early refills for medications that had been prescribed to him.

According to the board, Bobker prescribed his girlfriend, who is now his wife, olanzapine, an antipsychotic drug typically used to treat schizophrenia but that can cause drowsiness. His prescriptions were for various medications, all of which can be sedating and have the potential to be misused or abused, according to the board.

In October, according to the board, Bobker admitted he had called in prescriptions for his then-girlfriend and used some of her olanzapine. He admitted he sought early refills for his own medication, but said he was never sedated while caring for patients.

Last month, Bobker signed a consent agreement with the board. As part of that agreement, the board issued an official reprimand for unprofessional conduct, for “engaging in deceit or misrepresentation” with the olanzapine prescriptions and for misusing non-controlled substances in a way that could have endangered his patients.

The board lifted Bobker’s suspension and placed him on probation for five years, requiring him to be monitored, get psychiatric care and cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia, undergo a neuropsychological evaluation and practice medicine with at least one other licensed doctor.

The board said it would immediately suspend Bobker’s medical license if he tests positive for alcohol or any drug not prescribed to him, if he prescribes medication to himself or a family member or if he obtains medication fraudulently.

This is Bobker’s third license suspension and his third consent agreement in 12 years.

In 2007, the board suspended Bobker’s license following a report he had been abusing benzodiazepines and sedatives. He signed a consent agreement in 2008, agreeing to restrictions, monitoring and treatment. However, his license was suspended again later that year when he tested positive for a drug that had not been prescribed to him and that he was not supposed to take.

Bobker’s license remained suspended for almost three years. In 2010, he was granted a conditional license and signed his second consent agreement. That agreement again imposed restrictions, monitoring and treatment. The agreement ended in 2014 following positive reports and with the understanding that Bobker would voluntarily continue his treatment.

Bobker worked as a neurologist at Central Maine Neurology in Auburn and as a hospitalist for Central Maine Medical Center in Lewiston. Last summer, CMMC said Bobker would be joining the Topsham Care Center as a neurologist. All three medical facilities are owned by Central Maine Healthcare.

Central Maine Healthcare spokeswoman Kate Carlisle said Monday that Bobker no longer works for the health system. She declined to provide additional information, including when he left and whether he quit or was fired.

A message left for Bobker was not returned Monday.

Bobker’s lawyer, Kenneth Lehman, said Bobker has been practicing for two or three decades and “by all accounts, he’s a very good doctor and does a good job for his patients.”

“He cares a lot about his patients and tries to do the best for his patients that he can,” Lehman said. “The board could see that he is able to return and to resume practice now safely.”

Lehman said he did not know where, or whether, Bobker is working now.

ltice@sunjournal.com

 

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