60 doctors and pharmacists indicted in the largest bust of opioids in the United States

Federal prosecutors on Wednesday accused 60 doctors and pharmacists of illegally distributing opioid prescriptions as part of what they consider to be the largest crackdown operation of this type in the world. history of the United States.

A special strike force from the US Department of Justice, which conducted the investigation, began making arrests in five states early Wednesday. One of the doctors involved is Dr. Raymond Noschang, a specialist in internal medicine at an office in Blue Ash.

Most of the defendants face charges of illegal distribution of controlled substances containing prescription opioids. The authorities claim to have distributed approximately 350,000 prescriptions, for a total of over 32 million tablets, in Ohio, Kentucky, Tennessee, West Virginia and Alabama.

Prosecutors said more than 28,000 patients had been affected by the arrests and described the doctors involved as drug traffickers rather than as health professionals.

"If the so-called health professionals behave like drug traffickers, we will treat them as drug traffickers," said Brian Benczkowski, Deputy Attorney General. Accused are charged with writing or executing orders outside of medical practice and prescribing them while they have no legitimate medical reason to do so, he said. declared.

The regional ordinance strike force in the Appalachians included more than 300 investigators from across the country. Although targeting illegal prescriptions is a priority, federal officials say it was not the only goal.

In an unprecedented effort, federal criminal investigators are working with public health to guide those who have received the illicit drug treatment orders, said Benjamin Glassman, US Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio.

Glassman said the authorities recognize that the closure of clinics and the arrest of those who direct them will not solve the addiction problems of the patients who received the prescriptions. to help, he added, a public health officer will be assigned to each clinic affected by the arrests.

The hope is that "when these facilities are dismantled, resources will be in place to give these victims the best possible chance of receiving appropriate treatment," said Glassman.

"Opioids are the health and public safety crisis of our lives," he said. "This innovation, I hope, will be a roadmap for the future."

The strike force, created to tackle the epidemic of opioids at the end of 2018, conducted a two-stage investigation. First, they used data analysis, including state prescription data monitoring programs and Medicaid billing, to identify potential offenders. They then carried out infiltration operations and a traditional law enforcement aimed at detecting suspects.

"We wanted to act quickly," Benczkowski said. The survey of 300 agents took place from January to Wednesday.

Federal prosecutors said the impact of illegal prescriptions was particularly devastating for rural communities, where patients often had few options when they were seeking medical help. According to the prosecutor, if the doctor these patients consult is carrying out illegal orders, the damage done to small towns can be dramatic.

The arrests that took place on Wednesday kidnapped many doctors who "are simply white lacquer drug traffickers," said J. Douglas Overbey, an American lawyer in the eastern district of Tennessee.

Among the arrests was a Kentucky doctor accused of signing prescriptions via Facebook, without ever seeing patients. Other doctors are accused of having dispensed pills directly against cash payment, including to pregnant women.

The list of defendants includes 31 doctors, 22 other licensed health professionals and seven other owners, operators or clinic employees, Benczkowski said.

Thousands of people have allegedly received the wrongful orders. "It's enough pills for every man, woman and child to receive a dose across the five states," he said.

Some people received treatments they did not need to enforce the prescriptions. He mentioned a dentist accused of having unnecessarily pulled the teeth of a patient.

The range of programs included sending patients from one country to another by another general practitioner, prescribing prescriptions at different intervals rather than the number of days prescribed at the same time. origin, and the fact that patients fill prescriptions in different pharmacies.

The Appalachian region has been hit hard by the opioid epidemic. Ohio was the second country in the country for the total number of overdose deaths and Kentucky ranked fifth in 2017. West Virginia was first, according to CDC data.

"The abuse and abuse of opioids is an insidious epidemic," said John Martin, deputy administrator of the Drug Enforcement Administration. "Unfortunately, the Appalachians are at the center of it.

Opioid overdose deaths prescribed in Ohio have fallen by 28% since 2001, even as synthetic fentanyl took over and the total number of overdose deaths continued to rise. Still, the problem of prescription opioids remains critical, Glassman said. According to statistics from the National Institute for Combating Drug Abuse, about 80% of people who use heroin have been abusing prescription opioids.

Last year, as part of a national action to fight health sector fraud, federal officials announced the indictment of 162 people for their alleged role in the prescribing and the distribution of opioids and other narcotics.

Doctors at two medical clinics in Hamilton, called "pill mills," were among the defendants.

In one of the clinics, centers for Cincinnati pain relief, officials said that patients were often prescribed fentanyl, oxycodone, morphine, and others. addictive drugs, without medical consultation.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, nearly 218,000 people died from an opioid-related overdose of prescription from 1999 to 2017. Prescription opioid-related overdose deaths were five times higher in 2017 than in 1999.

Cincinnati.com will update this story.

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