oxycodone

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Respected Doctor-Legislator Busted in Sex-for-Drugs Sting

Long Island's 'Doc' Spencer could face up to 9 years in prison if convicted

(Newser) - A New York doctor and legislator who advocated for opioid addiction prevention is now accused of offering drugs to an undercover officer in exchange for sex. Suffolk County legislator William "Doc" Spencer, 53—also an ordained minister and married father of three—was arrested Tuesday in the parking lot...

Doctor Who Gave Every Patient Opioids Sentenced to 40 Years

He 'hid behind his doctor's coat as a large-scale drug dealer'

(Newser) - A Virginia doctor who never met a patient he didn't prescribe opioids to has been sentenced to 40 years in prison. Prosecutors say Dr. Joel Smithers, 36, prescribed more than 500,000 doses of opioids in less than two years at his practice in Martinsville, population 13,000, before...

AG: Fake Pharmacist Doled Out 750K Prescriptions

For over 10 years, Kim Thien Le worked as Bay Area pharmacist without license: Xavier Becerra

(Newser) - For more than 10 years, Kim Thien Le handed out scads of prescriptions as a pharmacist at a handful of Walgreens stores in the Bay Area—nearly 750,000 scripts when all was said and done, California Attorney General Xavier Becerra noted Tuesday. The problem, per the AG's statement:...

Addict Allegedly Stole Dying Daughter's Opioids

Carol Ballweg confessed after tip from hospice staff: cops

(Newser) - Police in Missouri say a dying woman didn't get the oxycodone and fentanyl she was prescribed because her mother stole the drugs to feed her opioid addiction. Carol Ballweg—charged with abusing a vulnerable person and stealing a controlled substance—allegedly admitted to stealing painkillers from her 20-year-old daughter,...

In One Year, Town of 400 Was Shipped 2.2M Opioids
In One Year, Town of 400
Was Shipped 2.2M Opioids
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT
Feb 4, 2018 4:30 PM CST

In One Year, Town of 400 Was Shipped 2.2M Opioids

W.Va. numbers are 'outrageous,' say congressional investigators

(Newser) - Williamson, W.Va., is home to 2,900 people. That's one reason congressional investigators are flabbergasted by documents showing two local pharmacies received 20.8 million prescription painkillers from out-of-state drug companies over a decade, reports the Charleston Gazette-Mail . Ohio-based wholesaler Miami-Luken says it supplied 6.4 million hydrocodone...

Major Insurer Takes Big Step on OxyContin

Cigna will stop covering most prescriptions

(Newser) - A big change for a huge insurance company: Starting Jan. 1, Cigna will stop covering most OxyContin prescriptions in its group plans. OxyContin, an opioid painkiller, is an extended-release version of oxycodone; extended-release versions contain a higher dose of the active ingredients, which can make them ripe for abuse as...

Drug Evidence Goes Missing, Lawyer Blames Jurors

What happened to 71 oxycodone pills?

(Newser) - An Ohio defense lawyer is accusing at least one juror of stealing 71 oxycodone pills during a drug trial, the AP reports. John David Moore Jr. says jurors found his client guilty and then rushed out of the courthouse before anyone noticed the 71 opioid pills were missing. He says...

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