W.Va. judge says state agencies can sue drug companies

http://legalnewsline.com/news/254385-w-va-judge-says-state-agencies-can-sue-drug-companies

McGraw and now-Attorney General Patrick Morrisey claim Amerisource, Miami-Luken Inc., J.M. Smith Corporation, the Harvard Drug Group, Anda Inc., Associated Pharmacies Inc., Auburn Pharmaceutical Company, H.D. Smith Wholesale Drug Company, Keysource Medical Inc., Masters Pharmaceuticals, Quest Pharmaceuticals, Richie Pharmacal Co. and Top RX Inc. have substantially contributed to and substantially, illicitly and tortiously benefitted financially from the prescription drug abuse problem in West Virginia.

The defendants distribute various prescription drugs that are closely identified with the prescription drug problem in West Virginia and were on notice of the growing epidemic from the abuse of the prescription drugs, according to the suit.

The Attorney General’s Office claims the defendants are major distributors of controlled substances and have supplied the prescriptions to drugstores, which then dispense controlled substances based upon bogus prescriptions from physicians who are prescribing controlled substances for illegitimate medical purposes.

“Throughout their acts and omissions, these defendants have inserted themselves as an integral part of the pill mill process,” the complaint states.

The defendants have violated the West Virginia Uniform Controlled Substances Act and the West Virginia Consume Credit and Protection Act and have been unjustly enriched at the cost of the state of West Virginia.

Imagine that… drug wholesalers that are legally licensed DEA wholesale distributor selling control meds to legally DEA licensed pharmacies and they considered in WV as a integral part of the pill mill process. Aren’t they selling these controlled substances to the same pharmacies/Pharmacists that are legally licensed by the STATE OF WEST VIRGINIA  as are these wholesalers are licensed by the state of WV as are the physicians that are prescribing these controlled meds.

Since neither the DEA nor the state have revoked the licenses of these registrants… is the STATE OF WEST VIRGINIA complicit in the “pill mill process” ? Could it be that their motives have little to do with the abuse of substances/opiates in the state ?

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This edition of Stossel was back in 2010 – FIVE YEARS AGO… It sounds rather benign that the DEA only goes after the top xx number of docs… but.. you know what.. as soon as they take these docs off of their list.. the ones behind them.. now becomes the top of their list..

Champion of Pain Relief, Siobhan Reynolds Dead in Plane Crash

You need to read up on Siobhan Reynolds and her Pain Relief Network… she died in a mysterious private plane crash back in 2006 and the other person in the story Richard Pavey.. is also now dead.. you should read how he was mistreated by the state of Florida.  I never met her.. but.. occasionally exchanged emails with her “back in the day “..

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Investigators: Major Rx fraud case foiled

http://koin.com/2015/01/11/investigators-major-rx-fraud-case-foiled/

Detectives say Guice called the pharmacies and placed the orders using legitimate doctors’ names, addresses and Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) registration numbers. Guice is also accused of giving false patient names and birth dates, Ray said.

Diverters disguised as “patients” using fake names/dob to obtain control drugs… who could have seen this coming ?

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http://www.painmattersfilm.com/

Could not find a way to embed video directly on this post …

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http://www.ibtimes.com/meth-use-statistics-dea-reports-record-seizures-are-more-people-using-methamphetamine-1773242

Meth Use Statistics: DEA Reports Record Seizures, But Are More People Using Methamphetamine?

But the unprecedented figures don’t necessarily mean that meth use is on the rise in the U.S. Americans are using the synthetic drug at about the same pace in recent years, although there was a large increase from 2010 to 2011, according to the National Institute on Drug Abuse. In 2013, 595,000 Americans said they used meth in the past month, compared to 440,000 who used the drug in 2012. In 2011, there were 439,000 Americans who said they used meth in the last month, a steep increase from the 353,000 who said the same in 2010.

The number of new meth users within the last year is about on par with estimates from 2007 to 2012, according to the institute’s National Survey on Drug Use and Health. There were 144,000 new users of the synthetic drug in 2013, “which was similar to the estimates” in the previous five years, the survey

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13 WTHR Indianapolis

South Indianapolis pharmacy facing lawsuit over improper record keeping

The government is suing the company for failing to act as a gatekeeper over potent painkillers and narcotics. 13 Investigates shows you why the U.S. Attorney is demanding action over improper record keeping and other technical violations.

The U.S. Attorney’s office says despite the technical violations, no criminal activity was detected and the brothers have agreed to step up the record keeping. If they comply, the U.S. Attorney will recommend a $100,000 fine as part of a settlement. If they don’t, the lawsuit will stand and even higher fines are possible.

Under the lawsuit, the Marwood Pharmacy could be ordered to pay up to a million dollars. A potentially costly lesson for the Abu-Mahfouz brothers and a message sent to pharmacies all across central Indiana.

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Have You Been Harmed in a Medical Facility?

http://www.propublica.org/getinvolved/item/have-you-been-harmed-in-a-medical-facility-share-your-story

You could fill a baseball stadium many times over with the number of people who have been harmed while undergoing medical treatment each year. And that’s why we’re investigating the state of patient safety in the U.S. If you or a loved one has suffered patient harm, you can help inform and guide our reporting by filling out the form below. It asks quite a few questions, but please don’t be intimidated. Just do your best to summarize your story and one of us will follow up if we have additional questions. We promise we’ll keep your information confidential unless you give us permission to share it.

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Soldiers Help Grow And Protect Poppy Fields for heroin production

We spend money to protect poppy production.. so that it can be produced into Heroin and Cocaine … so that it can be illegal imported into our country and we can spend more money going after those that are selling it on our streets via the war on drugs ?

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Oregon docs to feds: Hands off our prescription drug info

http://www.bizjournals.com/portland/blog/health-care-inc/2015/01/oregon-docs-to-feds-hands-off-our-prescription.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+vertical_18+%28Legal+Services+Industry+News%29

The Oregon Medical Association is the latest group to voice serious concerns about federal drug enforcements of the state’s Prescription Drug Monitoring Program’s database.

Eight other state medical associations and the American Medical Association signed on to support the OMA in the brief it filed last month. The suit is pending before the U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals. The State Attorney General’s office filed the original suit in U.S. District Court in Portland in the fall of 2012.

Since DEA subpoenas do not need to be based on probable cause, Oregon sued to determine whether the state needed to comply. The American Civil Liberties Union also weighed in on behalf of several patients and a physician, arguing the subpoenas violated the Fourth Amendment protection against unreasonable searches and seizures. The judge agreed and the DEA appealed to the Ninth Circuit.

“If the DEA walked into my house and rifled through my medicine cabinet, that clearly would be a violation of the Constitution,” Wessler said. “The rules shouldn’t be be any different because the records are sitting in a secure state database.”

Cole also expressed concern about confidentiality and doctor-patient privacy.

“You could have providers and patient unfairly targeted by law enforcement because their information is an outlier in the data, even though it’s a legitimate case,” he said.

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Your Days Are Numbered: Beware Disciplining Employees So Soon After FMLA Requests

http://www.businessmanagementdaily.com/41876/your-days-are-numbered-beware-disciplining-employees-so-soon-after-fmla-requests#_

When it comes to the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), courts always pull out their stopwatches and calendars to see how closely the employee’s protected activity (requesting or taking FMLA leave) coincides with the adverse action (discipline or firing). As this new court ruling shows, the smaller the time, the bigger your risk of liability …

Case in Point: Lori worked as a pediatric pharmacist at the University of Maryland. During one of her shifts, she experienced increased back pain related to her degenerative disk disease. She tried to contact her supervisor by phone, texts and pager but to no avail. Eventually, she asked another pharmacist to monitor her station while she ran home to get her medication. (Leaving her station without approval was a violation of the employer’s policy.)

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