Eleven months after another state took action, and six months after his Iowa license expired, a physician assistant accused of numerous acts of sexual misconduct is facing charges from Iowa regulators.
The Iowa Board of Physician Assistants has charged Jon Eason Perry of Roswell, New Mexico, with being subject to some form of undisclosed discipline by the licensing board of another, unidentified state.
The case highlights the different degree of public disclosure related to actions taken by professional licensing boards in Iowa and other states.
In Iowa, virtually all of the underlying facts in the case against Perry have been redacted from public view due to a 2021 Iowa Supreme Court ruling that says the facts and circumstances that give rise to a license-discipline case must be kept confidential until the case is resolved. In New Mexico, the allegations against Perry, as well as that state’s disciplinary action, have been treated as public record for the past 11 months.
In New Mexico, the state’s Board of Medicine says Perry has been under investigation in that state since February 2020. The New Mexico board says it has compiled “credible evidence” that during a January 2020 medical appointment, Perry grabbed a female patient’s buttocks in a sexual manner; told her she should have his child; called himself a “whore;” stated that he was cheating on his wife because she couldn’t satisfy his sexual needs; and asked to see the patient’s vagina.
The New Mexico board launched a second investigation into Perry in July 2020 when a different patient, identified by the initials R.F., sought treatment from Perry for mental health issues that included anxiety, depression, suicidal ideation and hypersexuality.
R.F. alleged that Perry communicated with her by instant messaging on topics unrelated to her treatment; told her he wanted to have sex with her in his office; engaged with her in an intimate and sexual manner during an office visit; and encouraged her to leave her husband so they could be together.
Separately, the board alleged that Perry did not acknowledge R.F.’s suicidal tendencies; told R.F. he loved her; and told her that she was his “only hope to get laid in New Mexico in 2020.”
According to the board, R.F. recorded one of her visits with Perry, during which time he allegedly touched and kissed her; confessed to multiple divorces; stated that he was hypersexualized his whole life and didn’t want that to change; and stated that his future text messages would be professional and wouldn’t include any “dirty boy comments.”
In January 2021, Perry allegedly inactivated his medical license at the New Mexico board’s request. In April 2021, he agreed to surrender his New Mexico license and refrain from applying for a new license in that state. At that point, the specific allegations against him were disclosed.
The recent filing by the Iowa board omits any reference to the specific allegations against Perry. Even the document’s reference to the New Mexico board’s publicly disclosed settlement agreement with Perry is redacted from public view.
Perry’s Iowa license expired in September 2021, so it’s not clear what practical effect the Iowa board’s recent charges against him will have on his ability to legally practice in the state.
Iowa Capital Dispatch is part of States Newsroom, a network of news bureaus supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Iowa Capital Dispatch maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Kathie Obradovich for questions: info@iowacapitaldispatch.com. Follow Iowa Capital Dispatch on Facebook and Twitter.
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