Dr. Thomas C. Weiner, the oncologist who was the subject of a 2024 ProPublica investigation, will likely never practice medicine in Montana again.
Last week, members of the medical board revoked Weiner’s license, citing seven counts of medical malpractice. The board concluded that he had breached the rules of professional conduct and provided substandard care. The law requires Weiner to be reported to a federal database that tracks doctors who have been disciplined, making it extremely difficult for him to practice medicine.
The decision comes more than a year after ProPublica revealed that Weiner was suspected of harming patients, including some who died, for years at St. Peter’s Health, the only major hospital serving the state capital, Helena. The article was based on court and medical records that colleagues say Wiener is suspected of hastening the deaths of more than half a dozen people by subjecting non-cancer patients to chemotherapy and other dangerous treatments, failing to properly treat seriously ill patients and overprescribing addictive narcotics.
Weiner, 62, denied abusing patients. No one responded to a request for comment on the commission’s decision to revoke the license. St. Peter’s Health, which fired him in 2020 for medical malpractice, has not commented. The hospital has previously blamed fraudulent doctors for patient abuse and said it provides quality care.
Mr. Weiner sued St. Peter’s Hospital for wrongful termination, and the hospital ultimately won. Mr. Weiner also filed a defamation complaint against Dr. Randy Sussick, a former St. Peter’s colleague who had filed complaints about his treatment. Mr. Sasic remains a defendant in the case.
According to an order from the Montana Board of Medical Examiners, Weiner agreed to never seek a medical license in the state again and said he has no intention of practicing in the state.
Before he was fired, Mr. Weiner was the highest paid physician at St. Peter’s Hospital. Over the years, he made tens of millions of dollars and used his influence in the community to oust hospital leaders who questioned his judgment. Colleagues feared him and few challenged him. His firing sparked a public outcry, especially among his nursing staff and former patients, many of whom continue to support him, voicing their support in Facebook groups and billboards called “We Support Dr. Tom Weiner.”
ProPublica’s investigation identified numerous problematic cases. However, the medical committee focused on only seven cases. This included the case of Scott Warwick, whose death and subsequent autopsy sparked Weiner’s downfall.
As ProPublica reported, Weiner diagnosed Warwick with stage 4 lung cancer in 2009. Most people with this lung cancer die within a few months. Over the next 11 years, Weiner subjected his patient to one debilitating treatment after another, including chemotherapy. In 2020, he began to deteriorate rapidly and came to the attention of Sasik, who could not understand his original diagnosis and unlikely survival. But before Sasik could find an answer, Warrick died a painful death. His widow Lisa Warwick ordered an autopsy. The results came back negative for cancer, a finding Wiener has repeatedly denied, concluding that he likely died from the chemotherapy he ordered.
Medical board members reviewed the autopsy results. The commission concluded in a written order that Mr. Warwick died from “pulmonary toxicity related to gemcitabine.” In other words, the chemotherapy killed him.
“Mr. Weiner disagrees with and does not acknowledge the findings of this investigation,” the board said.
Following the board’s decision, Lisa Warwick said: “It’s definitely welcome news – I’m very happy to hear it – but we have to be careful that this whole thing is going to take too long.” For five years, the committee that is supposed to protect patients has “blatantly turned a blind eye”, she added.
Lisa Warwick and her children, Peyton (left) and Brady, stand next to a collage of photos of their late father, Scott. Louise Johns, ProPublica special reporter
After firing Wiener in 2020, St. Peter’s provided thousands of pages of documents to the medical board detailing allegations, including that Wiener assumed complete control of patient care and made it difficult for other doctors to see or ask questions about his care, according to a hospital spokesperson. Many of the documents, later obtained by ProPublica, remained unexamined by the board for years, a mystery that a spokesperson declined to explain.
The commission renewed Wiener’s license in 2021 and 2023. The commission renewed Wiener’s license for the third time this year after a ProPublica investigation publicly exposed the hospital’s allegations against him.
Weiner’s problems go beyond the loss of his driver’s license. Last year, the U.S. Department of Justice accused him of prescribing unnecessary treatments, double-billing, seeing patients more frequently than necessary, and “upcoding,” in which he charged more for treatment than he provided. Mr. Weiner denies the charges. Meanwhile, St. Peter’s has already agreed to a $10.8 million settlement for numerous False Claims Act violations related to Mr. Weiner’s claims to federal insurance programs.
Separately, the parents of the deceased 16-year-old girl whose case was highlighted in a ProPublica investigation filed an ongoing wrongful death lawsuit against Weiner, the hospital and other staff, accusing them of substandard care and fraud. In a lengthy interview with ProPublica, Weiner denied that her treatment led to her death.
A criminal investigation is underway, led by the Montana Department of Justice with assistance from federal investigators, according to several people interviewed by law enforcement. The office did not respond to a request for comment. Weiner has not commented on the ongoing criminal investigation.
Mr. Weiner sold his home in Helena this year, leaving behind a city bitterly divided over his legacy and many who believe he was a world-class doctor who has been unfairly targeted by hospitals and the media.
Anthony Olson, a former patient for whom Dr. Wiener prescribed nine years of chemotherapy for a cancer that didn’t exist, was among the group of supporters until doctors at St. Peter’s helped him come to terms with what had happened to him. His body is still recovering from being poisoned for so long. He thought about joining the Weiner Facebook group to share his story. However, he said, “I don’t think there’s anything I can say that will make them rational.” I’m really glad no one else was hurt.”
