Richard P Kaplan, MD

I saw Dr. Kaplan for a few years while I lived in L.A. No, he’s not particularly warm; he’s just all business. However, I do think he’s a good, no-​frills doctor. I like that he’s conservative in terms of his approach to medicine – he’s not trying to perform unnecessary procedures or pump you full of antibiotics for your acne. I think he’s just old-​school in terms of his personality. His clientele seem to be a mostly older crowd. You’re not going to find any Real Housewives in his waiting room!

Dr Kaplan has been my doctor since 2006. I can say with 100 percent conviction that he cares deeply about his patients. I was surprised to read the reviews saying otherwise.
He has a great sense of humor and his dry wit cracks me up every visit. He also has made a few tough calls about postponing a surgery I was going to have because of some blood work he had done. I was upset with him and even told him I didn’t like him telling my surgeon about the problem, which resulted in delaying my surgery. When I had the surgery performed two months later, my surgeon said that Dr. Kaplin probably saved me from a much more severe complication. He continued by saying that not many doctors would have had the guts to make that call. He may not wrap things up in a pretty package all the time, but medically he is very talented and a great doctor. He has cured every condition I have brought to him. As a person he caring and engaging. I stand behind Dr. Kaplin 100%.

Dr Richard Kaplan is a caring, honest, knowledgeable professional whose only concern is his patient’s well being. As such he is ranked highest not only as a top dermatologist but also as a human being.

I have had a skin problem for many years. I have been to many dermatologists and i have had no success. I was recently referred to Dr. Kaplan by a Dr. who worked with him at UCLA and has gone to Dr. Kaplan for his own care.
Wow, my skin is finally better!
While his office is «no frills» he more than makes up for it with his expertise. I regret I didn’t go to him sooner.

Well it looks like my experience is similar to everyone else.
I went here about five years ago, but it’s stuck in my mind as bad.
I had a dark spot on my face that got progressively larger, so my PCP sent me here. (not related… I think… but I no longer see her either). I was concerned about the spot, so I’m happy he took it serious. I ended up having it removed and biopsied. Thankfully, nothing wrong. I will say he did a great job of removing the spot — no pain, and no scar.
I also asked him about my acne. His response was, «well it’s not bad, I’ve seen worse». Sure, I’ve seen worse too, but I was tired of being a grown-​up with acne and what I thought was bad skin, so just be nice to me. I was so offended and put off. If it weren’t for the spot removal already being in process, I would have walked out right then.

Unfortunately I went to Dr. Kaplan before I ever saw this Unilocal page, otherwise I may have avoided what was to come. I saw him for a rash and he sent me to get bloodwork done, and called me with the results and basically said, «You have Lupus go see a rheumatologist» without so much as an explanation. I had very little foreknowledge of the disease so obviously it was devastating to get this news.
I took my blood results to my general doctor and she basically said, there is no way to tell with certainty that anything is wrong with you based on these two tests and he should have just referred you to us instead of diagnosing you.
I am still in the process of figuring it all out, but I found his approach really irresponsible and insensitive no matter what the final outcome of this will be. I am seriously considering lodging a complaint with the state medical board and so should all of you.

AVOID THIS «DOCTOR» AT ALL COSTS.
I wish there was an option for zero stars. I couldn’t agree more with the other reviews, this guy is a quack. First he’ll «diagnose» you by giving you a look over, then proceed to scold and try to scare you into believing you’re on death’s door and lucky to be alive. Next he will try to frighten you and bully you into unnecessary and extreme treatments. Then, he’ll continue to try playing his silly mind games with you until you inevitably move on.
For an extremely pleasant and professional experience see Dr. Vicky Rapaport (
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This guy is a nightmare. I completely agree with everyone here. I went to see him once and he was so weird, condescending, and creepy that I refused to go back again and went and found another doctor. Look, this many people can’t be wrong. There is something wrong with this guy, and the state should probably take a look at this license.
I went to see him for an allergic reaction — it was exactly the same as one I had a few years previously, so I was pretty sure what was wrong. I wanted to get a prescription for a topical allergy medication. He told me before he prescribed anything that he wanted me to get checked for a variety of very serious diseases including cancer! This totally freaked me out and got me paranoid to the point that I was losing sleep and pacing for two days.
Well I dumped him, went to another doctor who confirmed it was an allergy and got me my prescription, and then just to satisfy myself went and got a full blood panel done and came back in 100% health.
This guy is an ass, plain and simple.

Interesting to see a trend here.
I went to see Dr. Kaplan for a rash on my knees.
I am HIV positive and he would not even get anywhere close to me he stood as far as he possibly could and told me it was in my best interest to get a second opinion. He said it was probaly due to the fact that i was positive. I happen to test Drs for the united states medical license so I know whats a good DR and whats a Bad DR. His professional mannerism and repore was Beyond horrible. Very unprofessional and Uncaring I was upset and told him what I thought. I am now in COLLECTIONS for that visit. DONT GO TO HIM ! ! !

Went to Kaplan because I switched insurance and my regular dermatologist is not on my new plan. I had such a bad experience that I thought I’d go online to see if he’d ever been reviewed. My skin condition has been diagnosed and treated a few times over the years by 2 or 3 different doctors. It’s a very common condition and easy to treat. But Kaplan stubbornly came up with his own totally different diagnosis. When I pointed out and named my other doctors who had treated me he became vague and arrogant and told me that he was making his diagnosis in my best interest. I was completely disturbed by his demeanor. I’m distressed to see that he has a pattern of weird behavior, but I’m also relieved to see that I’m not alone. By the way, after sharing these review with others, I’ve found out that friend of mine had an experience similar to the one described in Mr. H’s review … creepy.

Hopefully, my experience with Dr Kaplan is not common, but it made such an impression on me, that I am Unilocaling about it years later.
He was not caring, he was arrogant, basically told me that my allergies were all in my mind. (I was referred by another doctor.) He didn’t not listen to my history, in fact, he thought he knew everything without getting my history. Thankfully, I was convinced to go to another Dermatologist who was able to redeem the specialty in my mind.