The Iowa State Appeal Board settled a 2020 lawsuit with a cardiologist for releasing information related to an incident that occurred during a 2010 surgery, The Gazette reported Feb. 7.
Dr. Domenico Calcaterra sued his former employer, Iowa City-based University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics, the Iowa board of regents and the state in August 2020 for breach of contract. He claimed they released information about a November 2010 operating room incident to prospective employers, causing him to lose job opportunities.
"The credentialing official for that hospital group shared a letter from the UIHC dated June 14, 2019, that was addressed to the hospital's recruiting agency" and disclosed previous allegations against him, according to his lawsuit.
The board agreed to settle for $55,000.
In a 2021 lawsuit between the hospital, Iowa State Appeal Board and the cardiologist, the Iowa Supreme Court ruled that healthcare regulators cannot publicly disclose information about formal disciplinary charges filed against physicians in the state.