FILE - In this Jan. 28, 2013 file photo, Sen. Robert Menendez, D-N.J. speaks on Capitol Hill in Washington. Menendez's office says he traveled on a plane owned by a Florida physician who is a friend and political donor, but denied that the senator had engaged with prostitutes in the Dominican Republic. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite, File)
Menendez: reimbursed donor $58.5K for 2 trips
FILE - In this Jan. 28, 2013 file photo, Sen. Robert Menendez, D-N.J. speaks on Capitol Hill in Washington. Menendez's office says he traveled on a plane owned by a Florida physician who is a friend and political donor, but denied that the senator had engaged with prostitutes in the Dominican Republic. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite, File)
By PETE YOST
Associated Press /
January 30, 2013
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Melgen has been licensed to practice in Florida since 1986 and purchased the West Palm Beach plot of land where he built his main office in 1991. Over the years, Melgen has become regarded as a top ophthalmologist, speaking at conferences and even operating on then-Gov. Lawton Chiles in 1997. The governor later appointed Melgen to a state panel on HMOs.
Calls to Melgen’s offices Wednesday were forwarded to an answering service where receptionists told callers to try back Thursday. Calls to Melgen’s home in North Palm Beach, which is appraised at $2.1 million, went unanswered.
On the website for his medical practice, Melgen writes: ‘‘I am always asked what sets me apart from most other doctors, and I would have to say that I do not consider myself to be a ‘cookbook’ physician. My patients are my number one priority, and when I am looking to treat a diagnosis I try to look at all the data at hand and extrapolate the best treatment instead of solely adhering to what the current ‘standard’ of treatment may be.’’
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