Doctors charged over Matthew Perry death 'still allowed to prescribe'

Two doctors charged in connection with Matthew Perry’s death are reportedly still allowed to legally prescribe medication.

Medics Mark Chavez, 54, and Salvador Plasencia, 42, are facing charges over their alleged roles in distributing ketamine to the Friends actor, who died on October 28, 2023, aged 54 from the “acute effects” of the anaesthetic.

But TMZ has reported that despite the charges, the Medical Board of California investigated both doctors and has found no reason to revoke their licences.

The board said in a statement: “Both (their) licences are current and active and the board has not imposed any restrictions on them.”

Chavez and Plasencia’s licences are listed on the Medical Board of California’s website without any restrictions.

Chavez’s is classified as “renewed and current” with an expiration date of June 30, 2026 - while Plasencia’s has the same status with an expiration date of October 31.

The US Department of Justice said Plasencia is charged with one count of conspiracy to distribute ketamine plus seven counts of distribution of ketamine and two counts of altering and falsifying documents or records related to the federal investigation.

Chavez agreed to plead guilty to one count of conspiracy to distribute ketamine - confirming in his plea agreement he sold ketamine to Plasencia off-market for Perry to use.

The US actor is thought to have paid the pair upward of $US55,000 in cash in the weeks leading up to his sudden death.

Three others have been charged over Perry’s death in the hot tub of his Los Angeles mansion, including his live-in personal assistant, Kenneth Iwamasa, 59, who has admitted regularly injecting the actor with ketamine despite having no medical training.

Jasveen Sangha, 41, known as the ‘Ketamine Queen’, and Eric Fleming, 54 have also been charged with supplying Perry with ketamine.