[ad_1]
A Norristown doctor who allegedly exchanged prescription drugs for nude pics of patients is one of four Montgomery County physicians accused in separate investigations for the illegal prescription of opioids and drug abusers. other narcotics, the authorities said.
Investigators revealed on Wednesday morning the findings of a lengthy investigation, continuing what they termed wider crackdowns on the various sources that fuel the deadly epidemic of opioids.
"These four doctors we investigated and arrested did not meet their legal or ethical obligations as doctors," said Montgomery County Attorney Kevin Steele. "By failing to meet long-established standards of care, these accused contributed to the heroin and opioid epidemic and worsened it."
Source / Montgomery County Attorney's Office
Physicians arrested and charged by the Montgomery County authorities include, from left to right, 61-year-old Brian C. Keeley, a resident of Philadelphia, who operated a medical practice in Ambler; Lawrence I. Miller, 48, a Warminster resident who operated an office in Lansdale; and Joseph M. Rybicki, 59, a resident of Haddonfield who operated an office in Lower Moreland Township.
The four arrested doctors were identified as follows:
• Dr. Lawrence I. Miller, 48, of Warminster, Bucks County, with a medical practice in Lansdale, Montgomery County.
• Dr. Joseph F. Cipriano, 56, who ran a medical practice at his home in Norristown
• Dr. Brian C. Keeley, 61, from Philadelphia, with a doctor's office in Ambler
• Dr. Joseph M. Rybicki59, from Haddonfield, New Jersey, with a medical practice in Lower Moreland Township, Montgomery County
The affidavits linked above detail a series of alleged offenses against the four physicians, who stated that the prescribed medications provided, including opioid analgesics, Adderall, Xanax, Ambien and cough syrup with promethazine, sometimes called "lean".
Allegations that Cipriano traded opioid prescriptions and other drugs for nude female photos were among the most disturbing findings made during the investigation. Cipriano worked at his office at 905 DeKalb St. in Norristown.
Prosecutors said the police had received for the first time in May 2017 a report on allegations of alleged misconduct, when a person had directed investigators to an inappropriate relationship between Cipriano and a drug addict patient. After obtaining search warrants for Cipriano's mobile phone content, authorities said they discovered several suspicious exchanges via SMS and Snapchat.
"OMG Tired, call people since 6 pm Your beautiful pictures allowed me to continue, LOL," Cipriano reportedly wrote in a message on May 2, 2017, referring to nude photos that the woman sent him.
The next day, in response to a message the day after Cipriano, the woman hinted that she wished to continue their so-called arrangement.
"There are more things from where I come, I've been so stressed lately that I appreciate the help," the patient wrote, according to the police.
"Thank you very much, it was hard to make ends meet, I'll send more photos to you, is there a way to win 20 or 30 more?" she later asked. "I'm sorry to ask, I'm going to make sure it's worth it, go ahead for your Tuesday ?!"
Cipriano reportedly received a nude picture of the patient later in the afternoon and agreed to meet her, the investigators said.
The authorities claimed that Cipriano preferred to use Snapchat to correspond with some of his patients. The social media app is typically used for ephemeral conversations, deleted photos and videos unless they are saved or stored on the application's servers.
Search warrants for communications dating back to 2013 showed that Cipriano had several ongoing Snapchat exchanges with patients, said the prosecutor, including at least one who has openly talked about his abuse of Cipriano's prescribed pills.
Some messages contained explicit sexual descriptions of what Cipriano would have fantasized about his patients.
Cipriano faces 48 counts of unlawful prescription, three counts of insurance fraud, four counts of social protection fraud, and related charges of bribery and trafficking in products of illegal activity.
The charges against the four doctors as law enforcement and public health officials across the US struggle to contain the effects of opioid abuse.
Drug overdoses have killed at least 71,500 people in the United States in the past 12 months, an increase of over 10% between 2016 and 2017, according to preliminary figures from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. diseases.
"We need to stem the tide of death and pain caused by heroin and opioid addiction by any means possible," said Steele. "Dirty doctors – who operate pill mills selling scenarios, who supply drugs to drug addicts, operate outside the legal limits of prescribing methods and recognized quantities – are part of the problem and not part of the solution. . "
Source link
