Founder Alfred Bonati, founder of the Bonati Spine Institute, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy with more than $10 million in debt, court records said.
The minutes of Chapter 11 were also launched for the Institute’s business division, Gulf Orthopedic Center, and for another affiliate, all American holdings. In total, the two companies reported at least $110 million in debt.
Financial mal lazy comes two years after the surgical centre was temporarily closed by state regulators who said that “certified surgical technicians” performed multiple surgeries despite not being approved as doctors.
The Hudson clinic responded by suing the Florida Department of Healthcare Administration and accusing Bonati and his business of slandering him. The lawsuit was dismissed.
Orthopedic surgeon Bonati was approved as a Florida physician since 1981 and opened the Spine Research Institute in 1984.
He has faced many state disciplinary complaints, including lawsuits from at least the late 1980s from two people filed in 2023 claiming medical malpractice, and former patients since at least the late 1980s, according to previous Tampa Bay Times reports and state health department records.
His personal bankruptcy filing lists the Internal Revenue Service as his biggest creditor, with payroll taxes of $1.6 million and $1.1 million from his 2022 annual tax return.
In separate filings, he also requires the sale of a new Port Richie West Shore Drive home worth $650,000 for tax property purposes. The buyer said the closure is scheduled for April 21, providing $1.35 million for the 2,000-square-foot home.
However, a $2.4 million lien was placed in her home by Cathy B. Scott, a dentist who successfully sued Bonati after the 2007 operation.
