Surgeons Will Face Charges of Fraud

Dr. Michael V. Elam, a Newport Beach cosmetic surgeon whose clientele includes entertainers Phyllis Diller and Jim Nabors, has been accused of incompetence, gross negligence and medical insurance fraud in a complaint filed by the state.

Elam’s former partner, Dr. Frederick Berkowitz, a cosmetic surgeon in Newport Beach, is accused of unprofessional conduct and insurance fraud in the same complaint, which was filed March 22 by the state attorney general’s office on behalf of the California Board of Medical Quality Assurance.

The board will hold a hearing within the next year, Deputy Atty. Gen. Barry D. Ladendorf said.

Possible Suspension

Elam, a doctor since 1978, and Berkowitz, a doctor since 1957, face possible suspension or revocation of their medical licenses if found guilty. Berkowitz was placed on three years’ probation in 1978 after the medical board found him guilty of aiding and abetting the unlicensed practice of medicine.

The state’s current complaint stems from a 1981 “tummy tuck” operation performed on Louise Byas, 42, of Dana Point. Byas contends that the two doctors left her with a disfiguring abdominal scar.

Elam and Berkowitz also are accused of submitting false medical claims in the Byas case. According to the state’s complaint, the doctors submitted insurance claims stating that the tummy tuck, as well as subsequent surgeries on her nose and eyelids, were required to correct medical problems.

All the surgeries, however, were performed for cosmetic purposes only, state officials contend. Cosmetic surgery is not covered in health claims.

$70,000 Settlement

Last year, Byas won an out-of-court settlement of $70,000 in a medical malpractice suit she brought against the two doctors in 1983. The doctors did not appeal the jury’s verdict.

On Wednesday, both doctors proclaimed their innocence, saying the allegations were initiated by a rival plastic surgeon who is jealous of their success.

The doctors are members of the American Board of Cosmetic Surgery, and Elam is also the head of the American Society of Liposuction Surgery.

Dr. Robert Miner, a plastic surgeon who testified for Byas, is a member of the American Society of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgeons, which contends that its board-certified surgeons are best qualified to perform surgeries such as liposuction (fat removal).

Miner filed the complaint with the state board in 1985 that resulted in the accusations against Elam and Berkowitz, state records show. Miner could not be reached for comment Wednesday.

Colby Smith, a Santa Ana board investigator assigned to the case, denied political rivalries prompted the state’s case.

‘Took a Long Time’

“We’re concerned only with the quality of medical care,” Smith said.

Berkowitz, 64, who worked with Elam until last year, discounted Byas as a disgruntled patient who “took a heck of a long time” to make her accusations.

But the 39-year-old Elam expressed anger and outrage at the charges.

“I think I am being railroaded and shafted in this whole thing,” Elam said in an interview at his office late Wednesday. “If I wasn’t a young, successful cosmetic surgeon, the other doctors in this community would leave me alone.”

Elam added that he should not be prosecuted for a case that happened seven years ago, especially since he and Berkowitz already have paid the woman restitution.

“I went to trial already,” he said. “Don’t you think it should be over?”

‘He’s the Best’

Comedienne Diller, 70, also rose to Elam’s defense. Diller said Elam performed cosmetic surgery on her nose, eyes and forehead and gave her a chemical peel and two cheek implants in 1985 and 1986.

“He’s the best,” Diller said from her Los Angeles home Wednesday. “What he’s done for me is miraculous. It has taken 70 years to get to the way I want to look.”

Elam has some less satisfied clients. He said that at least 13 have filed malpractice suits against him. But, Elam added, he did not consider the number excessive considering that he treats more than 500 patients per year.