Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Former Pharma Executives Bribed Doctors To Prescribe Powerful Opioid, Prosecutors Allege
Stat: Former Insys Execs Charged In Nationwide Conspiracy
The former chief executive of Insys Therapeutics and several other former executives were arrested Thursday on federal charges of conspiring to bribe doctors to prescribe a prescription version of the potent opioid fentanyl. The painkiller, called Subsys, is approved by the Food and Drug Administration for cancer patients who suffer from intense bouts of pain that are not controlled by other opioid medications. In exchange for bribes and kickbacks offered by Insys employees, several doctors wrote large numbers of Subsys prescriptions for patients who did not have cancer, prosecutors said. (Armstrong, 12/8)
The Wall Street Journal: Former Insys CEO Arrested In Opioid Prescription Kickback Case
Six former executives and managers at Insys Therapeutics Inc. were arrested on Thursday and charged with conspiring to defraud health insurers and bribe doctors in exchange for prescribing the company’s fentanyl painkiller, Subsys, the Justice Department said. Among those arrested were former Chief Executive Michael Babich, who resigned from the company in November 2015. Mr. Babich, 40 years old, was charged with conspiracy to commit racketeering, conspiracy to commit wire and mail fraud, and conspiracy to violate the anti-kickback law. (Walker, 12/8)
Stat: Company Gave Doctor ‘One Of The Best Nights Of His Life’ To Boost Fentanyl Sales
Two top sales officials of Insys Therapeutics entertained the physician at a “club,” where they stayed until 4 a.m. “Went fantastic last night,” one of the company’s regional sales managers wrote in a text message to a sales rep, the indictment says. “He had to have had one of the best nights of his life.” The next week, the doctor wrote 17 prescriptions for Subsys — a legal form of the opioid fentanyl — when he usually averaged about three. He also received $260,050 in payments over three years for participating in the Insys speaking program — something federal officials allege was nothing more than a mechanism for bribing doctors. (Armstrong, 12/8)
In other news on the opioid crisis —
The Philadelphia Inquirer: Jury Convicts Philly Doctor Who Ran Pill Mills
A federal jury on Thursday convicted a doctor with running a pill mill out of his offices in Roxborough and Bryn Mawr on 308 counts, including 269 of drug distribution, and one count of drug distribution resulting in death. (12/8)
Denver Post: New Methadone Program For Denver Probationers Resulting In Tears Of Relief For Participants
Tears of relief recently ran down one participant’s face as he entered a new program aimed at getting troubled drug offenders treatment. The new initiative is less than two months old, but already it is paying dividends, according to those running it. Of the seven people who started the Medication Assisted Treatment Induction Program for Denver probationers, four remain enrolled. The program aims to identify troubled probationers who aren’t complying with requirements that they remain drug free. It gives them the option of receiving methadone treatment while in jail. Then they are handed off to an outpatient treatment program upon their release from custody. (Osher, 12/8)
