Ohio Doctor Pleads Guilty to Unlawful Distribution of Opioids

The owner of a Cincinnati-area medical practice pleaded guilty today for illegally distributing opioids.

Assistant Attorney General Brian A. Benczkowski of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, Special Agent in Charge Keith Martin of the Drug Enforcement Administration’s (DEA) Detroit Division and Special Agent in Charge Lamont Pugh III of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General’s (HHS-OIG) Chicago Regional Office made the announcement.

Raymond Noschang, M.D., 59, of Cincinnati, Ohio, pleaded guilty to eight counts of unlawful distribution of oxycodone before U.S. District Judge Susan J. Dlott of the Southern District of Ohio. Sentencing has not yet been scheduled.

As part of his guilty plea, Noschang admitted that he prescribed controlled substances to patients in amounts and for lengths of time that were outside the scope of legitimate medical practice. Noschang also admitted that he routinely prescribed controlled substances to patients even though various “red flags” suggested that he should stop writing those prescriptions, change the prescriptions and/or counsel patients accordingly. Further, Noschang admitted that he prescribed dangerous combinations of drugs known to heighten the risk of overdose and death.

As part of his guilty plea, Noschang admitted that the amount of drugs attributable to his conduct is between 400 and 700 kilograms of converted drug weight.

The DEA, HHS-OIG and the Ohio Board of Pharmacy investigated the case. Trial Attorneys Tom Tynan, Leslie Garthwaite and Chris Jason of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section are prosecuting the case.

The Fraud Section leads the ARPO Strike Force. Since its inception in October 2018, the ARPO Strike Force, which operates in 10 districts, has charged more than 70 defendants who are collectively responsible for distributing more than 40 million pills. The Health Care Fraud Unit, in general, maintains 15 strike forces operating in 24 districts, and has charged nearly 4,200 defendants who have collectively billed the Medicare program for more than $15 billion. In addition, the HHS Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, working in conjunction with HHS-OIG, are taking steps to increase accountability and decrease the presence of fraudulent providers.

Individuals who believe that they may be a victim in this case should visit the Fraud Section’s Victim Witness website for more information.

We need to start putting away the real drug dealers, cartels, money laundering banks, politicians, prosecutors and dea agents that are protecting, profiting and promoting the illegal drug trade. They are the ones letting the heroin and fentanyl across the border. And don’t forget the opium production in Afganistan. We’ve had the dea for 50 years and billions have been wasted but overdoses keep going up. Do you think that these criminal agents are actually incinerating captured drugs? Do you think there is any accountability when they operate in secret. If you do LOL you government lover!

Demonizing doctors won’t do squat here. Overdoses and suicides are and will continue to increase no matter how many doctors you put in prison. With this thinking, maybe we should ban guns, ammo, alcohol, cars and throw in prison all the people that manufacture and sell theses products because people might use those products improperly as well.

What about the tons of drugs grown in Afganistan and cross the border???? How many have been killed by these corrupt government official or agents, or do they get a free pass to keep killing Americans?

It’s the people in government that are facilitating the drug trade and deserve capital punishment. Start there.

Killing a doctor does nothing. All you need to do is pull his license.

Get you head out of the government’s rear. They are responsible for drug deaths.

And BTW. Why did the dea increase production limits by 40% in 2012??? They are so innocent.

What is the Converted Drug Weight Calculator ??? Well I found this tidbit and from the looks of it somebody sort of knows how to play with MSOffice and spreadsheets to convert to the equivalent of Pot...

Your TAX Dollars hardly working.
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Converted Drug Weight Calculator (Dec. 2018)

When a drug case involves multiple controlled substances, USSG 2D1.1, Application Note 8(B) provides a means to determine a single offense level for the various substances. This application note sets a converted drug weight (formerly marihuana equivalents) for each gram of commonly encountered controlled substances. The sum of the converted drug weights is then used to determine the base offense level under the drug quantity table found at 2D1.1(c). The Converted Drug Weight Calculator will calculate converted drug weights for most drugs, based on the November 1, 2018, Sentencing Guidelines section 2D1.1, Application Note 8, and will provide a base offense level based on the total quantity of converted drug weights.

The calculator does not account for the reduction in offense level when the accused receives a mitigating role as provided in USSG 2D1.1(a)(5), or any applicable reduction for acceptance of responsibility as allowed by USSG 3E1.1.

The calculator also does not account for enhancements for specific offense characteristics found at USSG 2D1.1(b), or enhancements from Chapter 3 or Chapter 4, Part B of the Guidelines. Finally, this spreadsheet does not apply to offenses covered by USSG 2D1.11, Unlawfully Distributing, Importing, Exporting or Possessing a Listed Chemical; Attempt or Conspiracy.

The Converted Drug Weight Calculator incorporates amendments effective November 1, 2018, and comments referencing relevant sections of USSG 2D1.1 and its Application Notes.

https://ks.fd.org/content/converted-drug-weight-calculator

I like the way they “convert” everything into the Pot Scale so it sounds even more scary than it really is.

Now all these mega numbers on the 5 o’clock snewz start to make sense...

I guess the next “conversion” Spreadsheet will be for Alcohols and calculate Beer, Shots and Mixed Drinks to the Unsweetened Iced Tea Scale.

And after that it will be Nonalcoholic beverages sweetness Table with Sterile Deionized Medical Grade Water for All the Diet Programs.

I guess I better start building those Spreadsheets so they’re read for them to use.

“I like the way thclis blood lustey “convert” everything into the Pot Scale so it sounds even more scary than it really is.”

Yes, then we can have imbeciles calling for hangings or perhaps burring at the stake.

We even have a poster on this thread that called for “public hangings” (plural) but incredulously claims to be a Christian? Well maybe he is a descendent of one of those people calling for burning witches in Salem or torturing heretics in Spain.

So if I guess if we hang 1% of the active doctors in the US for “overprescribing” that comes out to 8,700 hangings based on 870 k active doctors. Then I guess we’ll ‘solve” the opioid crisis. Maybe that will give people their jollies; public hangings were one great entertainment for the masses that satisficed the people’s blood lust. Very Christian don’t you think?

It just goes to show you that people are just as barbaric, stupid and cruel as they were at any time in the past.

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