Eastern Shore doctor gives up medical license

An Eastern Shore doctor known for treating people with Lyme disease has surrendered his medical license to the Virginia Board of Medicine.

Dr. Geoffrey Gubb, 74, was put on indefinite probation and banned from prescribing narcotics by the board last September for treating 15 patients with high-powered pain drugs while failing to monitor their condition or properly document diagnoses.

At the time, Gubb, who had a family practice in Belle Haven, said he was going to close his practice rather than meet the conditions of the board's order, which would have required him to complete medical education and a competency evaluation.

Gubb said the majority of his practice was people with a condition he referred to as chronic Lyme disease. While most doctors believe cases of the tick-borne Lyme disease can be cured with antibiotics in less than a month, there is a small group of doctors like Gubb who believe that in some cases, the bacteria get into the bloodstream and produce a chronic condition that can linger for months or years. These doctors advocate and prescribe long courses of antibiotics and painkillers.

It was that treatment, which medical associations say there is no scientific evidence to support, that led to Gubb's problems with the board.

According to documents posted this week on the Virginia Board of Medicine website, Gubb sent a letter last month to the board surrendering his license.

Elizabeth Simpson, (757) 446-2635, elizabeth.simpson@pilotonline.com