More patients sue Cedars-Sinai over alleged misconduct by OB-GYN

Twenty-five more women have filed suit against a former Cedars-Sinai Medical Center obstetrician-gynecologist and the facilities where he worked, accusing Dr. Barry J. Brock of sexual abuse and medical misconduct.

The lawsuit, filed late Monday in Los Angeles County Superior Court, alleges “a generations-long history of covering up Brock’s serial sexual exploitation and abuse of female patients” at Cedars-Sinai, where Brock practiced medicine from the early 1980s until the recent termination of his hospital privileges.

The lawsuit also alleges that the medical center “hid negative reports about Brock, despite the fact that many of the reports came directly from Cedars-Sinai’s own employees and staff,” including nurses and medical assistants who witnessed Brock’s behavior while serving as chaperones for sensitive examinations.

The new lawsuit follows an earlier complaint from 35 patients with similar allegations against Brock and Cedars-Sinai, filed earlier this month by the same attorneys.

Brock, 74, has denied any misconduct, telling The Times that he had never touched a patient inappropriately or made sexually suggestive or harassing comments. The longtime OB-GYN was a member of the Cedars-Sinai physician network until 2018 and retained his clinical privileges there through mid-2024.

“I have never done an inappropriate exam,” Brock said Tuesday in response to the new lawsuit.

Cedars-Sinai said it had terminated his hospital privileges this fall following an investigation into “concerning complaints from patients” and that it had reported the matter to the state medical board.

“The type of behavior alleged about Dr. Barry Brock is counter to Cedars-Sinai’s core values and the trust we strive to earn every day with our patients,” a Cedars-Sinai spokesperson said in a statement.

“We recognize the legal process must now take its course, and we remain committed to Cedars-Sinai’s sacred healing mission and serving our community.”

The most recent suit accuses Brock of conducting breast and vaginal exams without medical justification, alleging that he told one pregnant woman “that these cervical checks did not really mean anything, but that he wanted to do them anyway,” according to the complaint.

In reaction to the latest allegations, Brock said in a statement that “every exam has been medically justified” and that the practice of “pelvic cervical checks when the patient is near term in their pregnancy is to see if there is any change in dilation.”

Another former patient who saw Brock during the 1990s and early 2000s alleged that he told her at an appointment that she had “beautiful breasts.” When the patient didn’t respond, Brock told her, “I’m not saying that as a doctor, I’m saying it as a man,” according to the lawsuit.

During another appointment, the same patient alleged, Brock sniffed his fingers after performing a vaginal examination.

In his statement, Brock denied doing that and said the alleged comment about breasts “does not sound like anything I would say.”

Several plaintiffs said that Brock made sexually inappropriate comments about their bodies, at times while neglecting their medical needs or dismissing their concerns.

A woman who saw Brock after experiencing a miscarriage said he told her that she was “‘nice and tight down there’, and that her husband would really enjoy it,” the complaint stated.

The patient “felt creeped out and violated, particularly because she was still grieving the loss of her child,” according to the lawsuit.

“This allegation does not make any sense and is not true,” Brock said in response. He said he had never neglected the care of his patients, nor dismissed concerns “unless they do not have medical merit.”

One woman brought her fiancé to an appointment, and said the man became so uncomfortable with Brock’s commentary on her looks during a pelvic exam that he asked the physician to stop making such remarks, the complaint alleges. Brock said that he does not recall that occurring.

Several plaintiffs alleged that Brock touched them in inappropriate ways during examinations, including touching their clitoris for no medical purpose. One patient alleged that after a Pap smear decades ago, Brock inserted his finger into her rectum without warning or consent.

“To this day, [the woman] is reluctant to undergo another Pap smear, for fear of reliving and experiencing the same abuse Brock subjected her to,” the lawsuit stated.

Brock said that he only performs rectal exams when they are medically indicated, and doesn’t examine the clitoris unless patients have a specific complaint or a mass in that area. “On rare occasions, a brief graze of the clitoral area could occur during a pelvic exam, but it would not be a touching,” he said.

In the previous lawsuit filed earlier this month, multiple patients accused Brock of giving them unnecessary stitches following childbirth or making crude comments about the procedure. The new suit includes additional allegations of needless suturing, including one alleged incident that resulted in a patient being unable to use a tampon and suffering pain during sexual intercourse.

While suturing another patient after childbirth, the lawsuit states, Brock told her, “I’m going to make you a virgin again, by stitching you tighter. Believe me, your husband will thank me.”

When asked about the allegation, Brock said that he always follows medical guidelines when repairing perineal tears. “I do not perform unnecessary suturing,” he said in response to questions about the lawsuit.

In addition to Cedars-Sinai, the lawsuit targets Beverly Hills OB-GYN and Rodeo Drive Women’s Health Center. Those medical practices didn’t immediately provide comment on the allegations in the suit.