Prestigious medspa operated illicitly under influencer surgeon who had been fired for malpractice

A physician’s assistant in New York City says a trendy bicoastal medspa has been operating under the supervision of an Instagram-famous plastic surgeon whose license remains suspended for malpractice, and claims she was fired after refusing orders to inject a patient’s face with an unapproved chemotherapy drug being used as a Botox alternative.

Instead of responding to Michelle Abramov’s concerns, her supervisor at GoodSkin Clinics “shifted the discussion to [her] physical appearance, complaining that she did not wear make-up and stat[ing] that she had ‘bad energy,’” according to a million-dollar whistleblower lawsuit obtained by The Independent .

A week later, Abramov was deemed a “bad fit,” and summarily terminated, the lawsuit alleges.

GoodSkin, which is based in Los Angeles, describes itself as “[d]riven by innovation,” says it is “steeped in a holistic European methodology.” The medspa offers clients what it calls “The Untouched Look,” a descriptor trademarked by founder Lisa Goodman, a physician assistant who has been featured in W magazine and The New York Times , and in 2020 battled Kim Kardashian in court over an allegedly similar-looking product GoodSkin was hawking at the time.

“GoodSkin’s signature ‘Untouched Look’ has the ability to provide lift while retaining contour during expression, which is one of the many reasons why many VIP clients turn to us for their red carpet needs,” the chainlet says in its marketing materials.

Goodman did not respond to emails or texts on Saturday, and sent phone inquiries to voicemail. Abramov’s attorneys did not return messages seeking comment.

Abramov, also a physician assistant, took a position working for GoodSkin’s East 4th Street Manhattan location in January 2024, according to her lawsuit, which was filed this week in New York State Supreme Court. The suit says her duties included performing “certain skin care procedures,” such as injecting fillers and Botox, which state law requires a licensed physician to supervise.

“Should an unskilled or untrained individual perform such procedures, this can cause permanent and substantial damage to the clients/patients,” the lawsuit goes on.

On May 10, some five months after Abramov took the job at GoodSkin, Goodman — who the lawsuit points out is not a licensed physician — “requested that Ms. Abramov inject off-label 5-FU into a client’s undereye area,” according to the suit.

Abramov “refused to do so as she had never done so before, the procedure had significant risks and she did not believe that the drug had not been approved for such use,” the suit continues, adding, “5- FU (Fluorouracil) is a chemotherapy drug used to treat cancer and has not been approved for the uses which Goodskin uses it.”

However, the client was duly placed on Abramov’s schedule for the 5-FU injection, which she once again said she would not do, the lawsuit states.

Digging further into the situation, Abramov demanded to review the practice’s malpractice policy and soon “became aware” that Goodskin was in fact treating clients without a qualified physician to supervise the work, according to the suit.

The supervising physician during Abramov’s time working at GoodSkin was medical director Leif Rogers, according to the suit. Rogers, who is listed on the clinic’s website as “Dr. Leif Roger,” is “not currently eligible to practice medicine in the State of New York and has not been so since May 30, 2022,” contends the lawsuit, which lists GoodSkin and Goodman as defendants, but not Rogers himself.

According to licensing and disciplinary records, the New York State Department of Health in May 2022 found Rogers, who once gained some notoriety for having implanted “wings” in the back of a man attempting to transform himself into a “Human Ken” doll, guilty of professional misconduct over a botched surgery and barred him from practicing medicine for three years.

A year earlier, the State of California revoked Rogers’ license after bungling a liposuction treatment that allegedly left his patient unable to move her legs. Ultimately, the revocation was stayed and Rogers was placed on a strict five-year term of professional probation that mandated he attend ongoing retraining courses, pass a competency review, and have his work monitored at all times by a physician with a license in good standing. (Rogers, the self-proclaimed “ King of Renuva ,” did not respond to The Independent ’s requests for comment.)

“Immediately following such discovery, Ms. Abramov expressed concerns to… her immediate supervisor about the lack of such supervising physician, as Dr. Rogers’ license had been suspended,” Abramov’s lawsuit says.

Abramov’s supervisor “retorted that Dr. Rogers’ license was not suspended, but rather, “under review,” according to the suit. It says that’s when the supervisor launched into a tirade against Abramov’s looks and claimed her “energy” was bad, firing her on May 21.

“On information and belief, Lisa Goodman, as owner of Goodskin directed the termination of Plaintiff because of Plaintiff’s raising compliance concerns,” the lawsuit states.

Abramov was entitled to whistleblower protection under New York State Labor Law, but was instead let go without severance, the suit alleges.

“As a result of GoodSkin’s actions, Plaintiff was unlawfully treated, humiliated, degraded, victimized, embarrassed, and emotionally distressed,” the suit argues, saying Abramov has lost income and other job opportunities as a result. Further, it states, she has experienced “severe emotional and physical distress” due to GoodSkin’s “malicious, willful, [and] outrageous” conduct.

Abramov is demanding “at least” $1 million in compensatory and punitive damages. GoodSkin has not yet filed a formal response to the allegations.