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Concern about lawsuits and complex regulatory issues has made many physicians nervous. These researchers searched electronic databases for newspaper accounts in 2004 and 2005 of physicians indicted or tried for opioid-related offenses.
The authors identified 21 state and 26 federal cases involving 53 physicians. In 32 cases, prosecutors deemed the opioid prescriptions to be outside normal prescribing practices. In some cases, evidence came from undercover agents or from drug-abusing patients who deceived the physicians. Five cases involved murder charges, but charges were dropped or the doctors were found not guilty of murder. A physician’s 25-year sentence for manslaughter was withdrawn after the disclosure that he had not treated the patie…