The Iowa Board of Medicine regulates the state’s medical profession as part of the Iowa Department of Inspections, Appeals and Licensing. (Photo by Getty Images, board seal courtesy the State of Iowa)
A Cedar Falls physician repeatedly accused of misconduct has agreed to surrender his license.
Late last year, the Iowa Board of Medicine issued an emergency order suspending the license of 59-year-old Dr. Ted Bonebrake in order to protect the public. The order marked the fourth time the board had sanctioned Bonebrake for alleged substance-abuse issues or violating restrictions on his practice.
Bonebrake, an addiction-medicine and family-medicine physician who has practiced in the Cedar Falls and Waterloo area, was charged with violating an order issued by the Iowa Physician Health Program — a program that helps physicians cope with mental and physical health issues as well as substance abuse. He was also charged with improper management of medical records.
According to the board, while working at UnityPoint Clinic in Cedar Falls, Bonebrake was given “many warnings” and placed in performance-improvement plans related to “a significant number” of incomplete medical charts. The board alleged the clinic ultimately fired Bonebrake for failing to maintain patients’ medical charts in a timely fashion.
The board also alleged that while working for the Access Wellness and Recovery Center in Waterloo, Bonebrake failed to complete “hundreds” of patients’ medical charts.
Bonebrake’s written agreement with the board in which he surrenders his license provides conflicting information as to whether he has admitted any wrongdoing. It first states that he does not admit to any of the board’s allegations, then states that he has agreed to surrender his license for the “admitted violations” alleged by the board. The Iowa Department of Inspections, Appeals and Licensing did not respond to a question about the apparent conflict.
Bonebrake will be eligible to apply for reinstatement of his license in one year, according to the agreement.
Surrender follows years of issues
Board records indicate that in 2001, three years after Bonebrake was licensed to practice medicine and perform surgery in Iowa, he was hospitalized for alcohol detoxification. In August 2003, the board alleges, Bonebrake twice tested positive for marijuana use.
In September 2003, the board charged Bonebrake with repeatedly violating the terms of his then-current Physician Health Program contract by failing to comply with drug screening requirements on six occasions and failing to attend after-care meetings on at least nine occasions. The board allowed Bonebrake to keep his license, subject to a substance abuse evaluation and a licensing probationary period of five years.
In September 2004, the board alleged it had received information Bonebrake was consuming alcohol in violation of his licensing probation. As a result, the board in 2005 issued Bonebrake a warning, fined him $1,000 and placed his license on indefinite probation with additional requirements for substance-abuse evaluations, treatment and monitoring.
In December 2005, Bonebrake was involved in a serious car accident after consuming alcohol, the board alleged.
In January 2006, the board charged Bonebrake with habitual intoxication or addiction to the use of drugs or alcohol, and violating a board order. As a result of those charges, Bonebrake agreed to a suspension of his Iowa medical license.
In May 2013, the board agreed to reinstate Bonebrake’s license with the understanding that it was being placed on indefinite probation.
According to the board, Bonebrake “self-reported to Iowa Physician Health Program at the direction of the board” on Nov. 10, 2022. The board alleges he was then under a cease-practice agreement with the program and was prohibited from working under his Iowa medical license.
The board alleges that at some unspecified point, the program received information indicating Bonebrake was writing multiple prescriptions for narcotics and accepting money for those prescriptions while still under his cease-practice agreement.
The program then nullified its contract with Bonebrake due to what the board calls “ongoing, significant non-compliance.” In November 2024, the program referred the matter to the board for review, which led to the emergency suspension of his license late last year.