Doctor tied to 1-800-GET-THIN fined by Florida regulators A Beverly Hills doctor who lawsuits allege is behind the 1-800-GET-THIN advertising campaign has been fined by Florida regulators. The Florida Board of Medicine ordered Dr. Michael Omidi to pay a $1,000 fine and more than $2,000 of the agency's investigative costs for violations related to his treatment of liposuction patients in California, before the 1-800-GET-THIN ads blanketed Southern California freeway billboards, radio and television stations and the Internet. Omidi is licensed to practice medicine in both California and Florida. In 2008, the California medical board placed Omidi on three years' probation for violating state law by performing surgeries on three patients at an unaccredited surgical facility. Regulators in Florida filed a complaint against Omidi in 2009, citing the California violations, but didn't impose the penalty until June 14. Under Florida law, regulators can discipline doctors for violations committed in other states, even if another state imposed its own discipline. Konrad Trope, an attorney who represents Omidi, said in email that his client remains fully licensed to practice in both California and Florida. The Florida fine "was based entirely on the disciplinary action taken by the Medical Board of California against Dr. Omidi back in October 2008, when Dr. Omidi agreed to be placed on probation," Trope said in the email. "Your publication has repeatedly reported this story multiple times over the past past two years," Trope said. Lawsuits have alleged that Omidi and his brother, Julian, own and operate 1-800-GET-THIN, a Lap-Band surgery marketing company, and a chain of affiliated outpatient surgery centers. Five patients have died following Lap-Band surgeries at centers affiliated with 1-800-GET-THIN since 2009, according to lawsuits, autopsy reports and other public records. Federal, state and local authorities have launched investigations of the weight-loss business. 1-800-GET-THIN pulled most of its advertising after the Food and Drug Administration warned that the ads were misleading because they failed to adequately warn patients about risks of the surgery. In February, Irvine-based Allergan Inc., which manufactures the Lap-Band, said it would no longer sell the device to companies affiliated with 1-800-GET-THIN. Another patient dies after Lap-Band surgery Doctor accused of 'gross negligence' in death of Lap-Band patient