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U.S. doctors are aging, raising concerns about patient safety
Proposals to assess older physicians have collided with fierce professional resistance, legal challenges and debate about the value of cognitive screening.
October 12, 2026 at 5:00 a.m. EDTYesterday at 5:00 a.m. EDT
10 min
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By Katherine Ellison | Knowable Magazine
Richard David Heekin’s long career as an orthopedic surgeon ended catastrophically.
Heekin stepped down at 65 after patients accused him of continuing to operate while impaired by a progressive neurological condition that affected his balance and speech. Within three years of his 2020 retirement, at least 522 lawsuits had been filed against him and Ascension St. Vincent’s Riverside Hospital in Jacksonville, Florida. Plaintiffs charged that the hospital knew of the surgeon’s declining condition but allowed him to keep operating.
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