Physical Therapy Board hearing on James K. Cho deferred after testimony about unlicensed assistant and alleged overtreatment

An administrative law judge and the Physical Therapy Board of California heard testimony June 25 in Sacramento in a disciplinary proceeding involving licensee James Kyongh Ahon Cho, who sought early termination of a five-year stipulated probation imposed after allegations of supervising an unlicensed physical therapy assistant and related record-keeping and treatment concerns.

The California Attorney General’s attorney objected to early termination, saying the offenses were “egregious,” and noting that some patients were “as old as 93 years old” and resided in a skilled nursing home. The attorney urged the board to let Cho serve the full five-year probation term. Defense counsel Charles Webb said Cho “takes full responsibility” and asked the board to end probation early because Cho has complied with probation conditions for about two-and-a-half years.

The administrative-law judge swore in Cho, who testified about his decades-long career in physical therapy and repeatedly acknowledged failures in supervision, saying he regretted not confirming a PTA applicant’s licensure sooner and that he had since improved documentation and supervisory practices. Cho testified that he had used one license-applicant PTA who later obtained a license but that he did not timely verify the assistant’s licensed status and later terminated the assistant’s employment when he discovered the problem.

Board members asked detailed questions about supervision practices, documentation, billing, scope of visits and reassessments, and how often Cho visited the nursing facility. Cho acknowledged that nine patients were cited in the accusations, that some treatments continued after patients had reached maximum improvement, and that he had not self-reported the unlicensed assistant’s practice prior to the investigation. An investigator’s records and dates were identified in the hearing record; a board member said the alleged treatments occurred between 2017 and February 2018 and that state investigators completed a multi-year inquiry.

The attorney for the state characterized the case as involving prolonged, unnecessary treatment of vulnerable nursing-home residents and emphasized that the petitioner knew about the assistant’s licensing issue before the investigation and did not report it, including to Medicare. The AG asked the board to “finish what you started” and continue probation for the full five-year term.

Defense counsel emphasized Cho’s completion of required probation conditions, continuing education, positive supervisory letters in the record and calls Cho’s violations mistakes rather than an intent to defraud. Cho repeatedly told the board he had learned from the experience and would be more diligent going forward.

After closing arguments the matter was submitted and the record closed. The board convened in closed session to deliberate; no final decision was announced on the record and the judge told Cho he would not receive a decision that day. The board instructed staff it would notify parties of the outcome once deliberations and a final decision have been completed.

The board’s proceeding record includes a stipulated five-year probation, documentary exhibits (letters of supervision and character references) and testimony from Cho, his counsel, and the Attorney General’s representative. The matter will return only when the board announces its final disposition following deliberation in closed session.

Sources: Administrative hearing transcript and exhibits submitted to the Physical Therapy Board of California.