Modesto OB-GYN to surrender medical license after sexual misconduct allegations
Dr. Robert Altman of Modesto will surrender his medical license amid allegations of sexual misconduct and exploitation of patients, according to the Medical Board of California.
The board in an August 2024 accusation said the OB-GYN was subject to disciplinary action based on complaints from two former patients.
The Medical Board decision Tuesday said the physician agreed to resolve the case without the expense and uncertainty of additional hearings. Board paperwork shows that Altman signed the order Jan. 15 and it will become effective Feb. 3.
Altman is expected to pay $94,810 for costs of the investigation and enforcement action. An attorney representing the physician could not be reached Wednesday. Altman is a former president and chief executive officer of Gould Medical Group.
The allegations against Altman concerned two women who complained about inappropriate touching and other physical contact during examinations.
A person identified as Patient 1 in Medical Board paperwork complained that Altman touched her clitoris in an intentional way during a December 2020 gynecological exam. The then-54-year-old woman, who was stressed due to a divorce and her mother’s illness, complained about other physical contact from the doctor during the genital examination, the accusation said.
A second woman, identified as Patient 2, complained about “excessively familiar and physically intimate” contact from the doctor over many years, including frequent hugging and touching for nonmedical purposes.
“In addition to hugging, Patient 2 recalled occasions when (Altman) rubbed her back while she was wearing only a gown,” the board accusation said.
The board investigation considered a January 2017 exam for a painful lump in Patient 2’s genital region. According to the accusation, Altman inserted his fingers, without gloves, in orifices for what the patient thought was an excessive amount of time and continued after the patient said “enough.”
Patient 2 later noticed on her medical record that Altman had described finding a small mass and discussing a treatment option with the patient. The woman told an investigator that Altman did not give that information to her.
Another woman told The Modesto Bee in 2024 that she had complained to Sutter Gould Medical Foundation and the Medical Board in 2018 about the doctor’s alleged inappropriate touching, but no action was taken.
According to practice guidelines of the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, physical exams should be explained appropriately and performed with minimal physical contact to obtain information for diagnosis and treatment.
Per the guidelines, physical contact such as hugging or holding a patient’s hand should be limited because it may be misunderstood by patients.
Altman became a licensed physician in California in 1992.
This story was originally published January 28, 2026 at 3:26 PM.
