RICHMOND, Va. — Breast surgeon Sasa Grae Espino permanently surrendered her license to practice medicine in Virginia on July 1 after a CBS 6 investigation into the care she provided patients.
The Virginia Board of Medicine had been considering taking disciplinary action against Espino for alleged violations of Virginia code in her treatment of two patients when Espino opted to surrender her Virginia medical license.
Mandy Moore, who was the first woman to speak to CBS6 about her concerns related to Espino, expressed relief at Espino’s decision to surrender her license.
The board found Espino violated the regulations governing the practice of medicine in her care and treatment of Moore, according to the consent order.
Audrey Andrews, the second woman to speak to CBS 6 about her care under Espino, said she was celebrating the news.
The board also found Espino violated the regulations governing the practice of medicine in her care and treatment of Andrews, according to the consent order.
Espino is facing dozens of medical malpractice lawsuits filed since June of last year.
Espino's lawyers said in late February they deny all allegations of negligence in the lawsuits Espino has been served with.
They stated her "specialized fellowship, education, training, and surgical experience qualifies her to perform breast reconstruction surgeries."
The majority claim she "breached the standard of care" by performing breast reconstruction surgeries she was "not qualified" to perform.
As part of a consent order with the Virginia Board of Medicine, Espino did not admit nor deny the findings of fact and conclusions of law contained in the order, but she did agree to never be eligible to apply for reinstatement of her Virginia medical license at any future date.
In March, CBS 6 reported that five people, including Moore, Andrews and Richmond-area plastic surgeon Dr. Steven Montante, had filed complaints against Espino with the Board of Medicine since 2022.
"I felt that this provider was causing harm — practicing out of scope of her training. These patients have had legitimate complaints and concerns," Dr. Montante said.
The board had previously declined to take disciplinary action on the complaints from Andrews, Montante and two others.
Two weeks after our story published, the board issued a statement of allegations against Espino and called an informal conference.
Espino still has an active medical license in Alabama.
When asked if the surrender in Virginia would have an impact on her license in Alabama, Kimie Buley with the Alabama Board of Medical Examiners said "The Board will take note of the surrender, but the surrender is not guaranteed to affect her AL license."
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