'Hayden can still regain medical license'

By Mayen Jaymalin (The Philippine Star) Updated August 24, 2011 12:00 AM Comments (21)

MANILA, Philippines - Controversial cosmetic surgeon Hayden Kho, whose license to practice medicine was revoked by the Professional Regulation Commission (PRC), could eventually regain his license by filing an appeal.

The PRC clarified yesterday that the cancellation of Khos license due to alleged unethical behavior is not permanent and could be overturned if Kho files an appeal.

Although the commission revoked his medical license, it is not permanent and Kho may regain it after submitting an appeal and proving to the commission that he has changed and now has good morals, said Dr. Restituto Ocampo, a member of the PRC medical board.

Ocampo said the PRC medical board previously revoked the medical license of Kho after finding him guilty of immorality and dishonorable act for taking videos of his sexual encounters with actress Katrina Halili.

Khos fiance Dr. Vicki Belo sent a text message to STAR columnist Ricky Lo, saying that their lawyers told them not to make any comment on the report.

Hi Ricky, sorry the lawyers said not to comment, Belo said in her text message.

Khos legal counsel had already filed a motion for reconsideration, but the PRC medical board junked the petition.

The celebrity doctor elevated his case to the main commission, which recently affirmed the medical boards ruling to revoke the medical license of Kho. Ocampo said that if only Kho immediately surrendered his medical license after the medical board came out with the ruling sometime in 2009, he could now have the option to file an appeal to regain his license and resume his medical practice by this time.

Surrendering his license to the PRC was an easier and less costly option for Kho since he would just have to wait for two years to be able to regain his license, said Ocampo.

Two years have passed, but since he failed to surrender his license, he cannot yet file an appeal to regain it. I dont know their reason, but maybe he really has no interest to perform medical practice anymore, Ocampo said.

Ocampo said several medical doctors whose licenses were revoked have regained their permits after simply filing an appeal after two years and proving that they already addressed the cause of the cancellation.

Aside from a criminal case, Halili also asked the PRC two years ago to revoke Khos medical license for taking a video of their sexual encounters without her consent and uploading the photos in the Internet.

Ocampo said Kho decided not to surrender his medical license, but he still has the option to elevate the case to the Court of Appeals and eventually to the Supreme Court.

Meanwhile, Sen. Ramon Revilla Jr. said the decision of the PRC to cancel the medical license of Kho was an affirmation of the Senates findings that he might have committed unethical offenses when he took videos of his sex acts with different women. With Christina Mendez