Lawsuits allege Chicago area OBGYN was drunk while seeing patients

COOK COUNTY, Ill. - In the last 24 hours, five more women have come forward with lawsuits aimed at a local doctor and his former employer.

A total of seven lawsuits have now been filed against DuPage Medical Group, which is now known as Duly Health and Care.

Dr. Vernon Cannon worked there starting in 2007.

Of the five lawsuits filed Wednesday in Cook County Circuit Court, three of them claim Cannon was drunk during patient visits.

Another accuses him of bizarre behavior following a stillbirth.

A fifth lawsuit filed Wednesday alleges a sexual relationship with Cannon outside the medical setting for money.

In another lawsuit filed previously, a patient claimed that Cannon sexually assaulted her during an appointment in 2018. He has not been criminally charged for that alleged abuse.

Cannon was arrested in 2016 by Warrenville police for domestic battery.

Evidence from patient surveys starting in 2018 allege that OBGYN Cannon was drunk while seeing patients. Another survey from 2019 alleges that he had slurred speech and smelled of alcohol.

Lawyers with Hurley McKenna & Mertz, who are representing the women, say their clients have a lot of questions as to how Cannon was allowed to operate and work for the medical group.

Cannon was disciplined in the past, however, it was for not generating enough revenue for the medical group.

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Cannon still has his medical license through the state of Illinois, but there is an investigation underway, and it could be revoked.

A former patient says she was pregnant when she had a strange interaction with the doctor.

"The appointment was brief, as in like five minutes, dilated pupils, slurred speech, wasn't even really making very good eye contact with me," said Karin Stortz. "It didn't seem like I was even really there in the visit, it was a very quick in-and-out. No looking at charts, no asking about anything, no measuring, no listening to the sound of the heartbeat of the baby, and so it was just kind of jarring because even though doctor's appointments can be brief, that was extremely brief."

Duly Health and Care released the following statement in response to the lawsuits:

"We are aware of new cases alleging misconduct by dr. Vernon Cannon, a former DMG physician who has not been with the medical group since 2020. Patient care and safety are our top priorities. We take any and all allegations of misconduct seriously. Due to the nature of these matters and out of respect for the parties involved, we will not comment further on these legal proceedings."