NEWS RELEASE

Dr. Bonati, The Bonati Spine Institute file $500 million lawsuit against state of Florida alleging wrongful shutdown in 2023, harassment, defamation by state officials

The Bonati Spine Institute has filed a 9-count, $500 million lawsuit in federal court against the Florida Agency for Health Care Administration (AHCA) this week, citing civil rights violations, conspiracy by state officials, defamation and libel. The lawsuit was filed after the state agency shut down Dr. Alfred Bonati’s ambulatory surgery center in March of 2023 based on allegedly false accusations and for tortious inference with its ongoing business relationships in an effort to damage the practice’s reputation, the complaint says.

HUDSON, Fla. – A Florida spine surgeon filed a federal lawsuit Wednesday in the United States District Court for the Middle District of Florida against the state of Florida, Agency for Health Care Administration (AHCA) and three of its employees, after the agency wrongfully shut down the surgeon’s ambulatory surgery center in March of 2023 based on allegations, which were known to be false, the complaint says..

According to the complaint, AHCA, the state agency responsible for regulating healthcare facility licenses, issued an Emergency Suspension Order on March 15, 2023 and immediately suspended the license of Medical Development Corporation of Pasco County, the ambulatory surgery center affiliated with The Bonati Spine Institute, which is owned by Dr. Alfred Bonati, based on false allegations of a certified surgical technologist performing an “entire spine surgery.”

“These allegations were not only knowingly false, but done in a deliberate effort to damage our facility and the reputation of our owner, Dr. Bonati,” said Kimberly Bonati, senior vice president of media and communications for The Bonati Spine Institute. “A major piece of our success over the last 40 years has been the development of our unique approach to anesthesia where our patients remain awake and communicating with their surgeon throughout their surgical procedure. Because of this unique interaction between patient and surgeon, it would be impossible for anyone other than the patient’s surgeon to perform surgery in our facility.”

The investigation of Medical Development Corporation of Pasco County was led by AHCA Registered Nurse Specialist Tanya Ferrai, Rachel Beane and Terry Moriarty, who are also named in the complaint. The suspension of Medical Development Corporation’s license shut down The Bonati Institute’s ambulatory surgery center, and AHCA officials then leaked the Emergency Suspension Order to the media, resulting in negative publicity against Dr. Bonati individually, despite not being specifically named in the Emergency Suspension Order, the complaint says.

The lawsuit says that shortly after the ambulatory surgery center was wrongfully shut down, surgeons and team members from The Bonati Spine Institute were then credentialed at another ambulatory surgery center in Tampa so they could continue treating patients who were still in the course of receiving treatment.

According to the complaint, Ferrai and other AHCA employees showed up days later to that ambulatory surgery center in Tampa, looking for Dr. Bonati on several occasions, despite having no regulatory authority over Dr. Bonati’s medical license. When they did not find him, Ferrai and AHCA representatives harassed the employees of the unnamed Tampa surgery center, who then cut ties with surgeons from The Bonati Spine Institute to avoid further harassment from the state, the complaint says.

“I cannot sit back and allow this type of targeted abuse, harassment and false allegations against myself, my team, or our patients to stand,” said Dr. Bonati. “AHCA must be held to account for its actions, and those who were responsible for this gross devastation must face justice. It is the responsibility of all of us to hold our government accountable against malicious overreach, and we will pursue this case to the fullest extent of the law.”

According to public record, AHCA agreed to a settlement permitting Medical Development Corporation of Pasco County to resume operations on July 7, 2023, without any public comment on the matter. The Bonati Spine Institute is seeking $500 million in damages from the state, claiming that it has “suffered substantial damage in the form of lost revenue and reputational harm.”

Early in his career, Dr. Bonati, a trailblazer in the field of spine surgery, developed and patented multiple surgical techniques, commonly referred to today as “minimally invasive” spine surgery, that allows patients to receive a series of targeted surgical procedures designed to eliminate a patient’s pathology and symptomatology and allow them to return to normal activities within days. Throughout his 40-plus year career, Dr. Bonati’s practice has performed nearly 80,000 spine surgeries and consistently receiving patient-reported satisfaction ratings of higher than 98 percent.

About The Bonati Spine Institute:

Since 1984, The Bonati Spine Institute, led by Dr. Alfred O. Bonati, has provided world class surgical treatment to patients suffering from spine pain. Dr. Bonati and his team of highly trained specialists have successfully performed nearly 80,000 patented procedures, helping patients with spine pathologies. While, the Bonati Spine Institute is located in the Tampa Bay area, patients from all over the world have sought Dr. Bonati’s care, often after other doctors tried and failed to relieve their pain. Of those patients seen, 65 percent have had a history of failed back surgery prior to coming to the Bonati Spine Institute. The Bonati Spine Institute has received a patient-reported satisfaction rate of higher than 98 percent.

Read the Complaint

Date: April 3, 2024

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Are you outraged by egregious government overreach?

We’ve put together a guide of contact information for your state and federal elected officials. We encourage you to reach out to them regarding this matter, or any other wrongdoing against you or others committed by the state.

 

Florida Elected Officials:

Federal Elected Officials:

 

Thank you for standing up and protecting your rights!

-Kimberly and Dr. Alfred Bonati

Thank you for standing up and protecting your rights!

 

-Kimberly and Dr. Alfred Bonati