Opioid Strike Force Takes Down 60, Including Doctors and Medical Workers
The FBI and Department of Justice today announced criminal charges against 60 defendants—including 53 doctors, pharmacists, nurse practitioners, and other medical professionals who allegedly gave thousands of opioid prescriptions to addicted patients, essentially acting as their patients’ drug dealers. The effort is the largest law enforcement action to date against illegal opioid prescribers, officials said.
The arrests and charges are among the first cases brought against medical providers as part of the Appalachian Regional Prescription Opioid (ARPO) Strike Force, a team of federal investigators and prosecutors who are working to investigate illegal opioid prescription distribution in the areas of the country hardest hit by opioid addiction.
“Using the strike force model, we have now focused our resources on a region of the country which arguably has suffered the most from egregious prescription opioid diversion schemes,” FBI Executive Assistant Director Amy Hess said at news conference today in Cincinnati, where the charges were announced.
“The opioid epidemic is the deadliest drug crisis in American history, and Appalachia has suffered the consequences more than perhaps any other region,” Attorney General William P. Barr said. “But the Department of Justice is doing its part to help end this crisis. One of the Department’s most promising new initiatives is the Criminal Division’s Appalachian Regional Prescription Opioid Strike Force, which began its work in December. Just four months later, this team of federal agents and 14 prosecutors has charged 60 defendants for alleged crimes related to millions of prescription opioids. I am grateful to the Criminal Division, their U.S. Attorney partners, and to the members of the strike force for this outstanding work that holds the promise of saving many lives in Appalachian communities.”
“Reducing the illicit supply of opioids is a crucial element of President Trump’s plan to end this public health crisis,” said HHS Secretary Alex Azar. “It is also vital that Americans struggling with addiction have access to treatment and that patients who need pain treatment do not see their care disrupted, which is why federal and local public health authorities have coordinated to ensure these needs are met in the wake of this enforcement operation. The Trump Administration’s law enforcement and public health leaders will continue to work hand in hand to end this crisis that has hit Appalachia hard and steals far too many lives across America every day.”
Formed last October, the ARPO Strike Force operates in Cincinnati, Louisville, Pittsburgh, Knoxville, Memphis, and Birmingham to investigate illegal opioid prescriptions in the surrounding areas. ARPO is an extension of the Department of Justice’s Health Care Fraud Strike Force, which investigates and prosecutes Medicare fraud nationwide in partnership with the FBI, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, and the Drug Enforcement Administration.
“The ARPO strike force is going after doctors who act like drug dealers,” said FBI Criminal Investigative Division Health Care Fraud Unit Chief Steven Blaum. “Our focus is on the doctors because the sheer volume of pills they can prescribe can have a significant impact on their communities in terms of access to illicit opioids. By removing just one bad doctor, we can stop the addiction cycle before it starts.”
Among the defendants charged are two Kentucky doctors—one who is accused of giving his staff blank pre-signed prescriptions to provide to patients, and another whose friends paid for opioid prescriptions. A Tennessee doctor is accused of prescribing opioids in exchange for sex. And a group of Ohio pharmacists are charged with operating a “pill mill” that dispensed 1.75 million opioid pills in two years.
“The opioid crisis has had a devastating impact in the Appalachian region,” said Principal Deputy Inspector General Chiedi. “Addressing this public health issue and ensuring beneficiaries have continuity of care requires a collaborative approach with our federal, state, and local partners. Our commitment is resolute. We will continue working together to protect the health and well-being of all Americans and ending this terrible epidemic.”
“Opioid misuse and abuse is an insidious epidemic, created in large part, by the over-prescribing of potent opioids nationwide, and unfortunately, Appalachia is at the center,” said DEA Assistant Administrator Martin. “Today’s announcement sends a clear message that investigations involving diversion of prescription drugs have been, and continue to be, a priority for DEA.” From the FBI, DOJ Files