DOJ Charges 400 People [opioids, healthcare fraud]

Source: SarahPalin.com
Published: Jul 13, 2017
Author: Lawrence Richard
Post Date: 2017-07-14 07:03:15 by Tooconservative
Views: 8806

The Department of Justice, spearheaded by Attorney General Jeff Sessions, just charged over 400 licensed medical professionals with the mishandling of prescriptions and other heath care related fraud.

About a quarter of those charged were charged with opioid-related crimes.

Opioid overdoses have been described as “an epidemic” where over 90 Americans die on average every day in what Sessions describes as “trusted medical professionals… [putting] greed ahead of their patients.”

Per Washington Post:

More than 400 people across the country have been charged with participating in health care fraud scams totaling about $1.3 billion in false billings, including for the prescription and distribution of opioids.

In what federal officials Thursday called the “largest ever health care fraud enforcement action” by the Medicare Fraud Strike Force, 412 individuals, including 115 doctors, nurses and other licensed medical professionals, were arrested in a nationwide operation that involved more than 1,000 law enforcement agents in at least 30 states.

Those involved are responsible for unlawful distribution of opioids, which may be leading to increases in overdoses:

“One American dies of a drug overdose every 11 minutes and more than 2 million Americans are ensnared in addiction to prescription painkillers,” Attorney General Jeff Sessions said at a news conference. “We will continue to find, arrest, prosecute, convict and incarcerate fraudsters and drug dealers wherever they are.”

The investigation particularly focused on medical professionals who were involved in the unlawful distribution of opioids and other prescription narcotics, officials said. The abuse of pharmaceutical opioids is widely blamed for a medical crisis involving tens of thousands of overdoses on heroin and fentanyl.

Several of the doctors who were charged used federal dollars to fund their operation and many lives may have been lost as a result:

“Last year, an estimated 59,000 people died from a drug overdose…opioids play an enormous role in that total number,” said Chuck Rosenberg, acting administrator of the Drug Enforcement Administration. “This is an epidemic.”

Approximately 91 Americans die every day of an opioid related overdose, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Among the 412 defendants, 120 were charged with opioid-related crimes. Six of the doctors were charged with operating a scheme in Michigan to prescribe patients with unnecessary opioids, some of which were then sold on the street. The doctors allegedly billed Medicare for $164 million in false and fraudulent claims, according to federal officials.

Poster Comment:



But what about gun deaths, a subject we hear so much about?

Wiki:
In 2013, there were 73,505 nonfatal firearm injuries (23.2 injuries per 100,000 U.S. citizens), and 33,636 deaths due to "injury by firearms" (10.6 deaths per 100,000 U.S. citizens). These deaths consisted of 11,208 homicides, 21,175 suicides, 505 deaths due to accidental or negligent discharge of a firearm, and 281 deaths due to firearms use with "undetermined intent".
U.S. gun deaths hold steady at over 30,000 per year. We can see that over two-thirds of gun deaths are suicides, i.e. self-inflicted.

It seems that doctors handing out prescriptions willy-nilly are much more dangerous than gun ownership, a topic they love to lecture us about. But what about these self-inflicted opioid deaths?

It seems the doctors and Big Pharma are at least as dangerous to Americans as guns are.

Physician, heal thyself. - Luke 4:23

Post Comment   Private Reply

#1: Gatlin    To: Tooconservative (#0)

Nearly 70,000 people on Medicare's drug plan received “extreme” amounts of narcotic painkillers in 2016 and more than 22,000 others appeared to be “doctor shopping” for drugs, patterns that put both groups “at serious risk of opioid misuse or overdose,” a government watchdog reported Thursday.

Gatlin posted on 2017-07-14 08:15:29   Reply   Private Reply

#2: Gatlin    To: Tooconservative (#0)

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration should review the safety and effectiveness of all opioids, and consider the real-world impacts the powerful painkillers have, not only on patients, but also on families, crime and the demand for heroin. That’s the conclusion of a sweeping report Thursday from the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine.

Gatlin posted on 2017-07-14 08:20:26   Reply   Private Reply

#3: Gatlin    To: Tooconservative (#0)

On the July 7 episode of The Weeds , Vox’s German Lopez and Matt Yglesias zeroed in on the opioid crisis — which has fueled the drug overdoses that killed more Americans in 2016 than the Vietnam and Iraq wars combined and are expected to kill 94,000 Americans in 2027.

Gatlin posted on 2017-07-14 08:25:01   Reply   Private Reply

#4: Gatlin    To: Tooconservative (#0)

Just 24 hours old, Jay’la Cy’anne Clay already was having a rough day. Convulsions rocked her tiny body as she lay under warming lights in the nursery of the Baptist Health Richmond hospital. She vomited and made strange, high-pitched cries. The infant was going through opioid withdrawal.

Gatlin posted on 2017-07-14 08:31:06   Reply   Private Reply

#5: Gatlin    To: Tooconservative (#4)

State officials say overdose deaths jumped by 18 percent last year in Michigan with the majority of cases involving opioid abuse.

Gatlin posted on 2017-07-14 08:35:35   Reply   Private Reply

#6: Gatlin    To: Tooconservative (#5)

The opioid crisis has hit many communities hard, leading to untimely deaths, higher health care spending and personal tragedies. But the crisis may also be rippling into the economy in complex ways. Goldman Sachs (GS) economist David Mericle said a research note earlier this month that the opioid epidemic "is intertwined with the story of declining prime-age participation, especially for men."

Gatlin posted on 2017-07-14 08:42:43   Reply   Private Reply

#7: Gatlin    To: Tooconservative (#6)

Study: Mayo Clinic overprescribing opioids after surgery.

Gatlin posted on 2017-07-14 08:47:52   Reply   Private Reply

#8: Gatlin    To: Tooconservative (#7)

UVA-LED STUDY: ENDING OPIOID EPIDEMIC WILL TAKE YEARS.

Gatlin posted on 2017-07-14 08:49:53   Reply   Private Reply

#9: Gatlin    To: Tooconservative (#8)

Opioids.

Gatlin posted on 2017-07-14 08:52:45   Reply   Private Reply

#10: Gatlin    To: Tooconservative (#0)

But what about gun deaths, a subject we hear so much about?

Of course, libertarians take any opportunity to deflect news away from drugs….right?

Seems we are hearing much more about deaths from opioids …

Pitiful …

Gatlin posted on 2017-07-14 08:58:38   Reply   Private Reply

#11: Deckard    To: Gatlin, Tooconservative (#10)

Seems we are hearing much more about deaths from opioids

Study: Opioid Use Decreases in States that Legalize Medical Marijuana

Legalized Marijuana Could Help Curb the Opioid Epidemic, Study Finds

Deckard posted on 2017-07-14 09:23:53   Reply   Private Reply

#12: Deckard    To: Gatlin (#10)

New Hampshire Bills to Expand Patient Access to Medical Marijuana Signed Into Law

Last month, Governor John Sununu signed two bills into law that will expand the state’s medical marijuana program. These measures further nullify the federal prohibition on cannabis in practice in the state.

Rep. Eric Schleien (R-Hillsborough) sponsored House Bill 157 (HB157) and House Bill 160 (HB160). The legislation expanded the state’s medical marijuana program. HB157 adds chronic pain to the list of qualifying conditions for patients to receive medical marijuana, and HB160 allows individuals with post-traumatic stress disorder to access medical marijuana.

HB157 passed the House on Mar. 8 by a 301-47 vote, and then passed the Senate on Apr. 20 by an 18-5 vote. HB160 passed the House on Mar. 8 by a 302-46 vote, and then cleared the Senate on a voice vote. Gov. Sununu signed HB157 into law on Jun. 16, and signed HB160 into law on Jun. 28.

“There’s been a lot of research on this which shows that doctors prescribe fewer opioids in states where medical cannabis is an option for pain, and those states have lower fatal overdose rates,” Rep. Schleien said in a written statement defending his reforms.

Deckard posted on 2017-07-14 10:07:45   Reply   Private Reply

#13: Tooconservative    To: Gatlin (#7)

Study: Mayo Clinic overprescribing opioids after surgery.

That one surprises me a little.

Nice group of links you've offered.

Tooconservative posted on 2017-07-14 10:55:08   Reply   Private Reply

#14: Tooconservative    To: Gatlin (#10)

Of course, libertarians take any opportunity to deflect news away from drugs….right?

Not really. But over 20K deaths per year are self-inflicted (suicide).

Almost as many as those self-inflicted opioid deaths.

The libmedia loves to harp endlessly on any set of dishonest gun stats they can. But they've barely made a peep about opioid deaths by comparison.

Tooconservative posted on 2017-07-14 10:57:45   Reply   Private Reply

#15: Tooconservative    To: Deckard (#11)

Study: Opioid Use Decreases in States that Legalize Medical Marijuana

Somehow Gatlin missed those opioid-related links. Thanks.     ; )

Tooconservative posted on 2017-07-14 10:58:33   Reply   Private Reply

#16: Gatlin    To: Tooconservative. Decakrd (#15)

Study: Opioid Use Decreases in States that Legalize Medical Marijuana

Somehow Gatlin missed those opioid-related links. Thanks. ; )

Ahem!

Somehow you both intentionally ignored the fact that doctors are prescribing much fewer opioid prescriptions in states that legalized medical marijuana as well as other states.

The Health Affairs journal found doctors in medical marijuana states prescribed 1,800 fewer painkiller prescriptions for patients a year.

Biased libertarian assholes cherry-picking articles to promote legalization of drugs are disgusting …

Opioid prescription rates are on the decline in Louisiana .

Opioid prescriptions drop …

Opioid prescriptions drop …

Opioid Prescriptions Drop in US, Wisconsin

Opioid prescriptions drop about 15% in Sangamon County

Maine doctors prescribing far fewer opioids, lockquote>

Gatlin posted on 2017-07-14 11:22:10   Reply   Private Reply

#17: Deckard    To: Gatlin (#16)

Somehow you both intentionally ignored the fact that doctors are prescribing much fewer opioid prescriptions in states that legalized medical marijuana as well as other states.

I posted those facts months ago and you in your typical arrogant fashion pooh-pooed it.

Deckard posted on 2017-07-14 11:31:21   Reply   Private Reply

#18: Tooconservative    To: Gatlin (#16)

The Health Affairs journal found doctors in medical marijuana states prescribed 1,800 fewer painkiller prescriptions for patients a year.

That doesn't sound like very many to me. Perhaps it was poorly stated. We're talking about millions of these prescriptions.

There has been a crackdown on opioids with doctors that started several years back. The doctors started seeing a lot more auditing of their opioid prescriptions and they cut a bunch of people off. I had a friend who was complaining about it. But he didn't need opioids anyway.

When the doctors started dropping those prescriptions was when we saw the rise in the casual use of heroin and even fentanyl. And the death toll has risen dramatically as users switch from legal opioids to illegal ones.

The doctors themselves are to blame for this crisis. And this is far from the only one caused by these moralistic doctors who love so much to lecture the rest of us.

Tooconservative posted on 2017-07-14 13:29:02   Reply   Private Reply

#19: Tooconservative    To: Deckard (#17)

I posted those facts months ago and you in your typical arrogant fashion pooh-pooed it.

First they laugh at you...

Enjoy your success with some grace. Don't be a sore winner, dude.

Tooconservative posted on 2017-07-14 13:29:53   Reply   Private Reply

#20: Deckard    To: Tooconservative (#19)

First they laugh at you...

"All truth passes through three stages. First, it is ridiculed. Second, it is violently opposed. Third, it is accepted as being self-evident."

I think Gatlin and whitey jumped to the second stage long ago.

I doubt they will ever reach that third stage.

Deckard posted on 2017-07-14 15:10:45   Reply   Private Reply

#21: Tooconservative    To: Deckard (#20)

First they laugh at you...

I was misquoting.

I was trying to quote the “first they ignore you, then they laugh at you, then they fight you, then you win” that Snopes and others say is misattributed to Gandhi. Trump tried to quote this some time back.

Snopes says it was from a speech by union leader Nicholas Klein in 1914.

And, my friends, in this story you have a history of this entire movement. First they ignore you. Then they ridicule you. And then they attack you and want to burn you. And then they build monuments to you. And that, is what is going to happen to the Amalgamated Clothing Workers of America.

But I always preferred the International Ladies Garment Workers Association to those godless commie stooges at the Amalgamated Clothing Workers of America.

And the Ladies even had a catchy theme song.

Tooconservative posted on 2017-07-14 16:04:51   Reply   Private Reply