The West Virginia Board of Medicine's case against Charleston neurologist Iraj Derakhshan pertaining to a complaint filed earlier this year is set to continue next month, and a resolution on the matter is unlikely before the end of the year.
Last week, a hearing examiner listened to four days of testimony, including Thursday's cross examination of the doctor, before temporarily halting the proceedings.
Derakhshan's lawyers, which include former Democratic Congressional candidate Nick Casey, of Charleston law firm Lewis, Glasser, Casey and Rollins, sought and received a one-month delay on the conclusion of the hearing in order to accommodate an appearance from an expert witness.
The witness, who is set to appear Oct. 6, is one of two physicians the defense has identified who will defend Derakhshan's practice of prescribing powerful prescription painkillers as a means of staving off pain and migraines.
Lewis Brewer, the hearing examiner, said last week that he would only allow the defense to use one other expert witness for the case.
Casey said arrangements are still being made as to which physician will appear in front of the board next month, but their testimony will likely be used to refute the opinions issued by one of the medical board's witnesses, who said Derakhshan's prescriptions were out-of-step with the medical community.
The witness is also expected to support "all or part of" the doctor's tendency of using opioids as a way to treat pain, Casey said.
After the defense's final witness is called, the hearing is expected to conclude and lawyers from the state medical board and Derakhshan will present Brewer with their versions of findings of fact and conclusions.
A transcript of the entire hearing's proceedings will then need to be prepared, which could take upward of two weeks.
Brewer, who could then allow the attorneys a chance to respond to one another, will make his final judgment to the state Board of Medicine, which will ultimately decide whether or not to follow the hearing examiner's recommendations or to take different actions.
The board could take a number of different actions, ranging from a public reprimand of Derakhshan, as they have done in the past; a revocation of his license to practice medicine in the Mountain State; or an absolution of any wrongdoing.
Based on the timing, Robert Knittle, the board's executive director, told the Gazette-Mail on Wednesday he isn't sure whether or not everything could be completed before the medical board's next hearing, which is scheduled for November.
Unless the board is able to do so, it is possible a decision on Derakhshan's future could be delayed until January.
The doctor's latest troubles with the state medical board come as a result of a complaint by the board in April alleging that Derakhshan had significantly escalated the dosage of prescription painkillers for 10 patients over time.
The complaint also noted the doctor had written more than 14,000 original or refill prescriptions for controlled substances from July 1, 2013, to Feb. 12, 2014.
Derakhshan, who is among the top five prescribers of hydrocodone in the state, has been unable to write prescriptions for Schedule II and Schedule III drugs recently, as a result of the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration refusing to provide him with a renewal for his federal registration number.
The doctor is also possibly under investigation by the DEA, although the agency has not confirmed that fact. Several DEA agents attended the doctor's public hearing last week. In addition, the mother of a former patient previously told the Gazette-Mail she was contacted by two agents after the Charleston Daily Mail published a story in which the mother alleged Derakhshan's prescriptions had killed her daughter.
In the past several months, Derakhshan has continued to maintain his innocence.
Throughout the doctor's two-day testimony and cross-examination, he continued to defend his practice of using opioids to combat pain. Dozens of patients have also come forward and offered support for Derakhshan.
Reach Joel Ebert at 304-348-4843, joel.ebert@dailymailwv.com, or follow @joelebert29 on Twitter.