For disciplined doctors crime and misconduct can pay very well at Big Pharma

http://www.naturalnews.com/031151_doctors_professional_misconduct.html

February 4, 2011

For disciplined doctors crime and

misconduct can pay very well at Big Pharma

Sunday, January 30, 2011 by: Tony Isaacs, citizen journalist

(NaturalNews) Being found guilty of criminal activity or

professional misconduct might ordinarily result in curtailed

opportunities and income, but such has not been the case with

hundreds of disciplined doctors on the payrolls of Big Pharma.

Doctors who've been sanctioned, fined, suspended and even

convicted of crimes have found their misdeeds to be no obstacle

when it comes to raking in big money as drug company speakers,

consultants, educators and drug trial overseers.

An examination by the ProPublica news agency of seven

pharmaceutical companies' payment records in 30 states found 292

disciplined doctors who

earned a collective $7.1 million in 2009-2010 alone. Accusations

against the doctors included serious medical mistakes, sexual misconduct,

and excessive use of addictive drugs. Seventy

of the doctors had been sanctioned multiple times or by more than

one state. Twenty-one of them had three or more strikes against

their records.

Since the investigation excluded over 60 pharmaceutical

companies and 20 states, the total number of disciplined

doctors on Big Pharma's payroll is sure to be much higher. In

addition, not all doctors properly report their drug company

incomes - as Colorado Public Radio found when it reviewed the

ProPublica data and discovered that at least 84 Colorado physicians

did not disclose their drug company contracts.

Among the disciplined doctors were:

*a Long Island psychiatrist who spoke on behalf of a Pfizer's

antipsychotic drug even though his New York

medical license was suspended in 2001 and he was placed on

probation for five years for helping supply the narcotic drug

Vicodin to six patients who

were drug addicts.

*a Texas

psychiatrist disciplined in 2000 after being accused of improperly

prescribing drugs to several patients, including one who died of

an overdose. The doctor's website indicates he has given more than

1,300 presentations on stress disorders.

*two Orlando-area urologists who pled guilty in 2001

to conspiracy to sell the prescription drug Lupron without

complying with FDA regulations: they received almost $200,000 from

Glaxo between 2009 and 2010.

*a Phoenix family doctor

specializing in HIV who was the most highly sanctioned doctor. He

was disciplined five times between 1996 and 2009. In the most

serious case, numerous male patients accused him of sexually

victimizing or violating them.

*a cardiologist whose license was suspended in New York and New

Jersey last year after he pleaded guilty to one count of criminal

sexual contact in 2008.

A previous New York Times investigation

in 2007 found that in Minnesota alone at least 103 doctors, who

had been disciplined or criticized by the state medical board,

received a total of $1.7 million from drug makers between 1997 to

2005. The median payment over that period was $1,250; the largest

was $479,000.

One such doctor was a psychiatrist the Minnesota Medical board

accused of having a "reckless, if not willful, disregard" for the

welfare of 46 patients; 5 of whom died in his care or shortly

afterward. Despite his license being suspended and restricted,

drug makers paid the psychiatrist thousands for each clinical

trial patient he recruited. One patient who refused recruitment

was discharged by the psychiatrist despite being diagnosed as

suicidal. Two weeks later the patient committed suicide.

Dr. Humayun J. Chaudhry, chief executive of the Federation of

State Medical Boards said, "If I'm sitting in an audience

listening to a physician tout a certain drug and I was aware of

those disciplinary actions, I would have questions about their

character and their motivation for talking about that subject."

Dr. Chaudhry also said pharmaceutical companies

could easily ask his group to search for discipline in any state

against any of their physicians.

Sources included:

http://www.naturalnews.com/031151_doctors_professional_misconduct.html

February 4, 2011

For disciplined doctors crime and

misconduct can pay very well at Big Pharma

Sunday, January 30, 2011 by: Tony Isaacs, citizen journalist

(NaturalNews) Being found guilty of criminal activity or

professional misconduct might ordinarily result in curtailed

opportunities and income, but such has not been the case with

hundreds of disciplined doctors on the payrolls of Big Pharma.

Doctors who've been sanctioned, fined, suspended and even

convicted of crimes have found their misdeeds to be no obstacle

when it comes to raking in big money as drug company speakers,

consultants, educators and drug trial overseers.

An examination by the ProPublica news agency of seven

pharmaceutical companies' payment records in 30 states found 292

disciplined doctors who

earned a collective $7.1 million in 2009-2010 alone. Accusations

against the doctors included serious medical mistakes, sexual misconduct,

and excessive use of addictive drugs. Seventy

of the doctors had been sanctioned multiple times or by more than

one state. Twenty-one of them had three or more strikes against

their records.

Since the investigation excluded over 60 pharmaceutical

companies and 20 states, the total number of disciplined

doctors on Big Pharma's payroll is sure to be much higher. In

addition, not all doctors properly report their drug company

incomes - as Colorado Public Radio found when it reviewed the

ProPublica data and discovered that at least 84 Colorado physicians

did not disclose their drug company contracts.

Among the disciplined doctors were:

*a Long Island psychiatrist who spoke on behalf of a Pfizer's

antipsychotic drug even though his New York

medical license was suspended in 2001 and he was placed on

probation for five years for helping supply the narcotic drug

Vicodin to six patients who

were drug addicts.

*a Texas

psychiatrist disciplined in 2000 after being accused of improperly

prescribing drugs to several patients, including one who died of

an overdose. The doctor's website indicates he has given more than

1,300 presentations on stress disorders.

*two Orlando-area urologists who pled guilty in 2001

to conspiracy to sell the prescription drug Lupron without

complying with FDA regulations: they received almost $200,000 from

Glaxo between 2009 and 2010.

*a Phoenix family doctor

specializing in HIV who was the most highly sanctioned doctor. He

was disciplined five times between 1996 and 2009. In the most

serious case, numerous male patients accused him of sexually

victimizing or violating them.

*a cardiologist whose license was suspended in New York and New

Jersey last year after he pleaded guilty to one count of criminal

sexual contact in 2008.

A previous New York Times investigation

in 2007 found that in Minnesota alone at least 103 doctors, who

had been disciplined or criticized by the state medical board,

received a total of $1.7 million from drug makers between 1997 to

2005. The median payment over that period was $1,250; the largest

was $479,000.

One such doctor was a psychiatrist the Minnesota Medical board

accused of having a "reckless, if not willful, disregard" for the

welfare of 46 patients; 5 of whom died in his care or shortly

afterward. Despite his license being suspended and restricted,

drug makers paid the psychiatrist thousands for each clinical

trial patient he recruited. One patient who refused recruitment

was discharged by the psychiatrist despite being diagnosed as

suicidal. Two weeks later the patient committed suicide.

Dr. Humayun J. Chaudhry, chief executive of the Federation of

State Medical Boards said, "If I'm sitting in an audience

listening to a physician tout a certain drug and I was aware of

those disciplinary actions, I would have questions about their

character and their motivation for talking about that subject."

Dr. Chaudhry also said pharmaceutical companies

could easily ask his group to search for discipline in any state

against any of their physicians.

Sources included:

http://www.naturalnews.com/031151_doctors_professional_misconduct.html

February 4, 2011

For disciplined doctors crime and

misconduct can pay very well at Big Pharma

Sunday, January 30, 2011 by: Tony Isaacs, citizen journalist

(NaturalNews) Being found guilty of criminal activity or

professional misconduct might ordinarily result in curtailed

opportunities and income, but such has not been the case with

hundreds of disciplined doctors on the payrolls of Big Pharma.

Doctors who've been sanctioned, fined, suspended and even

convicted of crimes have found their misdeeds to be no obstacle

when it comes to raking in big money as drug company speakers,

consultants, educators and drug trial overseers.

An examination by the ProPublica news agency of seven

pharmaceutical companies' payment records in 30 states found 292

disciplined doctors who

earned a collective $7.1 million in 2009-2010 alone. Accusations

against the doctors included serious medical mistakes, sexual misconduct,

and excessive use of addictive drugs. Seventy

of the doctors had been sanctioned multiple times or by more than

one state. Twenty-one of them had three or more strikes against

their records.

Since the investigation excluded over 60 pharmaceutical

companies and 20 states, the total number of disciplined

doctors on Big Pharma's payroll is sure to be much higher. In

addition, not all doctors properly report their drug company

incomes - as Colorado Public Radio found when it reviewed the

ProPublica data and discovered that at least 84 Colorado physicians

did not disclose their drug company contracts.

Among the disciplined doctors were:

*a Long Island psychiatrist who spoke on behalf of a Pfizer's

antipsychotic drug even though his New York

medical license was suspended in 2001 and he was placed on

probation for five years for helping supply the narcotic drug

Vicodin to six patients who

were drug addicts.

*a Texas

psychiatrist disciplined in 2000 after being accused of improperly

prescribing drugs to several patients, including one who died of

an overdose. The doctor's website indicates he has given more than

1,300 presentations on stress disorders.

*two Orlando-area urologists who pled guilty in 2001

to conspiracy to sell the prescription drug Lupron without

complying with FDA regulations: they received almost $200,000 from

Glaxo between 2009 and 2010.

*a Phoenix family doctor

specializing in HIV who was the most highly sanctioned doctor. He

was disciplined five times between 1996 and 2009. In the most

serious case, numerous male patients accused him of sexually

victimizing or violating them.

*a cardiologist whose license was suspended in New York and New

Jersey last year after he pleaded guilty to one count of criminal

sexual contact in 2008.

A previous New York Times investigation

in 2007 found that in Minnesota alone at least 103 doctors, who

had been disciplined or criticized by the state medical board,

received a total of $1.7 million from drug makers between 1997 to

2005. The median payment over that period was $1,250; the largest

was $479,000.

One such doctor was a psychiatrist the Minnesota Medical board

accused of having a "reckless, if not willful, disregard" for the

welfare of 46 patients; 5 of whom died in his care or shortly

afterward. Despite his license being suspended and restricted,

drug makers paid the psychiatrist thousands for each clinical

trial patient he recruited. One patient who refused recruitment

was discharged by the psychiatrist despite being diagnosed as

suicidal. Two weeks later the patient committed suicide.

Dr. Humayun J. Chaudhry, chief executive of the Federation of

State Medical Boards said, "If I'm sitting in an audience

listening to a physician tout a certain drug and I was aware of

those disciplinary actions, I would have questions about their

character and their motivation for talking about that subject."

Dr. Chaudhry also said pharmaceutical companies

could easily ask his group to search for discipline in any state

against any of their physicians.

Sources included: