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from the save-the-last-[lap]-dance-for-me?? dept.
Insys exec allegedly gave lap dance to doctor while pushing deadly opioid
A former regional sales director for Insys Therapeutics allegedly gave a lap dance to a doctor as the company was pushing him to prescribe its deadly opioid painkiller to patients. That's according to multiple reports of testimony given Tuesday from a former Insys colleague in a federal court in Boston.
The testimony is part of a federal racketeering trial getting underway this week against Insys founder John Kapoor and four former executives, including the sales director, Sunrise Lee. Federal prosecutors allege that the Insys executives used bribes and kickbacks to get doctors to prescribe the company's powerful and addictive fentanyl spray, called Subsys—which was intended only for cancer patients experiencing pain that's not alleviated by other medications (aka "breakthrough pain"). The former executives are also accused of misleading and defrauding health insurance companies that ended up covering the drug for patients who did not need it. A congressional investigation in 2017 concluded that Insys sales representatives bluntly lied and tricked insurers to do that—and the investigators released the tapes to prove it.
Previously: Opioid Crisis Official; Insys Therapeutics Billionaire Founder Charged; Walgreens Stocks Narcan
The More Opioids Doctors Prescribe, the More Money They Make
(Score: 1, Interesting) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday January 31 2019, @08:11PM (3 children)
Why do I get the sense there is no blame being placed on the healthcare providers?
(Score: 2) by Nerdfest on Thursday January 31 2019, @10:06PM
It's kind of a "reverse Weinstein".
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday February 01 2019, @03:12PM (1 child)
Because the healthcare providers are not at fault for the opioid crisis, maybe?????
Maybe if you were the one in genuine chronic or extreme pain you'd be grateful for a little relief from it. Maybe providers don't push opiates unless someone is in chronic or extreme pain or is immediately expected to be (you don't wait for an "Ow" for someone who just had open heart surgery, for example).
Maybe opioids require at least 30 days exposure before actual physical dependence kicks in? And maybe patients are told things like, "Your doctor is prescribing this for your pain. It is important to take it exactly as directed. Use of opioids as they are prescribed does not generally cause addiction, however, use of them off prescription does."
Fentanyl is not the devil. Uncontrolled use of it is. And medicine actively continues to build knowledge to use it more wisely (take, for example, the rise of statewide opioid prescription databases - now if we could go national with that).
That said, one thing that I can think of that might help the crisis out a little is if pharmacies and healthcare providers accepted surpluses back and held patients prescribed them accountable.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday February 01 2019, @04:45PM
If doctors just blindly believe whatever a pharmaceutical rep tells them then they should be replaced by algorithms. There is really no other point to a doctor.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday January 31 2019, @08:15PM (1 child)
Get lap dance from an Oriental stripper, and get paid for it.
Fuck the opioid epidemic, the doc is IN.
(Score: 2) by MichaelDavidCrawford on Thursday January 31 2019, @11:08PM
They're not as numerous as they at one time were, but provided you're also buying drinks you can get blown right there at the bar for three to five US dollars.
It's somewhat more expensive in a private room.
Yes I Have No Bananas. [gofundme.com]
(Score: 3, Informative) by Rosco P. Coltrane on Thursday January 31 2019, @08:16PM (12 children)
My family doctor gets invited to "seminars" in sunny resort islands quite regularly, in exchange for prescribing this or that shitty useless cold medicines, antidepressants or blood pressure pills. We've known each other for 40 years, and he knows I'll only buy generic versions of whatever he prescribes on principles. So he admits it to me. He's a real pusher - and the more he pushes, the sunnier the vacations (sorry, seminars...)
Here, It only makes the news because it's Fentanyl-related. But it's a well know fact that doctors are mostly all bribed by medical visitor, be it a little bit or all the way like mine. It happens all the time, everybody knows it, and nobody bats an eyelid. So cry me a river...
(Score: 5, Informative) by takyon on Thursday January 31 2019, @08:28PM (2 children)
How Medical Care is Being Corrupted in the US [soylentnews.org]
What's the Real Extent of Industry Payments to Doctors? [soylentnews.org]
Physicians Often Fail to Disclose Financial Conflicts in Research Papers [soylentnews.org]
Dollars for Docs [propublica.org]
Dollars for Docs: Who’s On Pharma’s Top-Paid List? [propublica.org]
Docs on Pharma Payroll Have Blemished Records, Limited Credentials [propublica.org]
Drug Companies Reduce Payments to Doctors as Scrutiny Mounts [propublica.org]
GlaxoSmithKline fined $3bn after bribing doctors to increase drugs sales [theguardian.com]
Pay to Prescribe? Two Dozen Doctors Named in Novartis Kickback Case [propublica.org]
Many Antidepressant Studies Found Tainted by Pharma Company Influence [scientificamerican.com]
Now There’s Proof: Docs Who Get Company Cash Tend to Prescribe More Brand-Name Meds [propublica.org]
Five Manhattan Doctors Indicted For Accepting Bribes And Kickbacks From A Pharmaceutical Company In Exchange For Prescribing Powerful Fentanyl Narcotic [justice.gov]
Opioid Makers, Blamed for Overdose Epidemic, Cut Back on Marketing Payments to Doctors [propublica.org]
Top Sloan Kettering Cancer Doctor Resigns After Failing to Disclose Industry Ties [nytimes.com]
[SIG] 10/28/2017: Soylent Upgrade v14 [soylentnews.org]
(Score: 3, Informative) by Freeman on Thursday January 31 2019, @09:50PM (1 child)
Here's a few books on the topic as well:
https://www.amazon.com/Truth-About-Drug-Companies-Deceive/dp/0375508465 [amazon.com] Hardcover published in 2004.
https://www.amazon.com/Bad-Pharma-Companies-Mislead-Patients/dp/0865478066 [amazon.com] Hardcover published in 2013.
https://www.amazon.com/How-We-Do-Harm-America/dp/1250015766 [amazon.com] Hardcover published in 2012.
https://www.amazon.com/Overdiagnosed-Making-People-Pursuit-Health/dp/0807021997 [amazon.com] Hardcover published in 2011.
https://www.amazon.com/Overdosed-America-Promise-American-Medicine/dp/0061344761 [amazon.com] Hardcover published in 2008.
https://www.amazon.com/Drug-Dealer-MD-Doctors-Patients/dp/1421421402 [amazon.com] Paperback published in 2016.
This isn't a new problem for us, it's just a lot easier to notice when people are dying from drug overdoses.
Joshua 1:9 "Be strong and of a good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed: for the Lord thy God is with thee"
(Score: 3, Insightful) by bob_super on Thursday January 31 2019, @10:17PM
All that awareness justifies the many bills now running through congress to fix the problem.
(Score: 3, Interesting) by MichaelDavidCrawford on Thursday January 31 2019, @10:34PM (7 children)
That I was once the subject of a - fortunately successful - Drug Intervention had to do with a persistent cough.
These days, prescriptions for controlled substances _cannot_ be refilled, once must physically visit the doctor for a new dead-tree prescription each time. Despite whatever digital signature systems may be available, that doctor has to give their "wet signature".
I also take Adderall for ADHD; to have to get a new script each time is a huge PITA because the bus to that particular doc, then the walk to hire office takes me like give hours each month.
But without the Adderall, I am unable to read anything other than USA today or maybe People, and I cannot get started. I cannot get started on just about anything. If I can somehow get started - and somehow I sometimes do - I carry on unstoppably, like a bulldozer or a heavily-loaded train. The clinical term is "Difficulty With Task Initiation".
And no, there is simply no way to explain that problem that make sense to _anyone_ other than a Psychiatrist or a Neurologist. It's as if that part of my brain which Gets Started has been lobotomized.
Yes I Have No Bananas. [gofundme.com]
(Score: 1, Informative) by Anonymous Coward on Friday February 01 2019, @12:58AM (5 children)
Do not take Adderall if you have high blood pressure.
Adderall can have weird heart effects.
Concerta is better.
(Score: 2, Funny) by Anonymous Coward on Friday February 01 2019, @02:15AM
How many lap dances did you receive for this post?
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday February 01 2019, @02:22AM
Since we're trading ADD med recommendations: my young son had tried them all.
The one that worked best for him was dexmethylphenidate, otherwise known as Focalin. It's basically a more purified version of Ritalin, the chemical you recommended (methylphenidate). Less irritability. Technically, Ritalin contains 2 isomers, one of which is better than the other. Focalin contains only the best isomer. He takes the extended release form.
Of course, everyone reacts differently, so try it and see if you think you can do better than what you are using now.
(Score: 2) by MichaelDavidCrawford on Friday February 01 2019, @06:51AM (2 children)
However, I never did think to ask her why she never suggested Ritalin. I'll drop her a dime to ask why.
My blood pressure is arguably quite a lot higher due to my Difficulty With Task Initiation than would be the case with the 10 mg of Adderall I take twice daily.
To actually get high with Adderall takes about 80 mg.
Note that Methamphetamine - yes, the stuff that Crystal Meth is made out of - is licensed by the FDA for ADHD. It's brand name is Desoxyn.
Very disturbing just now when I looked up that brand name is that it's also approved for weight loss. A _modestly_ overweight woman I once knew was in tears due to having visited a highly-regarded weight loss "doctor", found a fast red convertible parked in front of his office then after a five minute chat with no medical history questions nor any actual examination was prescribed "stimulants".
Doubtlessly Desoxyn.
To lose weight with Meth you'd have to take quite a lot. I never notice any effects from Adderall other than being able to read at length as well as to set into my work within minutes of getting to the office.
Yes I Have No Bananas. [gofundme.com]
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday February 01 2019, @08:04PM (1 child)
"I'll drop her a dime to ask why."
Errr, you have to supply drugs for simple questions and answers??
(Score: 1, Touché) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday February 02 2019, @01:54PM
Archaic reference to making a phone call, back when pay phones (also gone now) took 10 cents to make a call.
I hope you were joking. If so, it's a lame joke.
(Score: 2) by All Your Lawn Are Belong To Us on Friday February 01 2019, @09:17PM
You're a little behind the times. All 50 states now allow providers to eprescribe Schedule II-V medications [pharmacist.com]. However in many cases the added security and software to do so is of a sufficient enough cost that the provider finds it easier to still require paper refills - nothing yet says your prescriber *must* send an e-prescription.
This sig for rent.
(Score: 2) by PiMuNu on Friday February 01 2019, @01:26PM
Welcome to America, land of the free (if you can afford it)
(Score: 3, Funny) by chromas on Thursday January 31 2019, @08:28PM
Poor doc [youtube.com]
(Score: 2) by MichaelDavidCrawford on Thursday January 31 2019, @08:42PM
No, I was thinking of Mitch Kapor.
Nothing to see here, move on.
In other news, I've had Dyslexia since third grade; that led me to think it was the Doc who gave the lap dance.
Yes I Have No Bananas. [gofundme.com]
(Score: 1, Funny) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday January 31 2019, @08:48PM (4 children)
The corruption has gotten flat out trashy!
(Score: 1) by evilcam on Friday February 01 2019, @02:32AM (3 children)
My initial thought was that the Sales Director was the one doing the dancing.
"Make it rain, gurl, make it rain"
(Score: 2) by PiMuNu on Friday February 01 2019, @01:30PM (2 children)
I think that she was.
FTFA:
> [Sales directory] Lee, a former stripper, had no experience in the pharmaceutical industry before working at Insys, prosecutors noted... Brown recalled ... “She [Lee] was sitting on his lap, kind of bouncing around, and he had his hands all over her chest.’’
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday February 01 2019, @08:06PM (1 child)
If I knew then what I know now I would have gone to med school!
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday February 02 2019, @01:56PM
It's not as fun as it sounds when your're working with a cadaver.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday January 31 2019, @09:45PM (5 children)
And is Soylent now set to follow?
A propaganda piece this blatant is an insult to rationality, whatever the cause. When author does not respect readers, he/she/it is sure to respect facts even less.
(Score: 1, Touché) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday January 31 2019, @10:35PM (2 children)
How can this possibly classify as propaganda??
Can you trolls maybe just NOT? Some of us enjoy real discussion.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday January 31 2019, @11:54PM (1 child)
If that's not enough to you, then please eat up all the "not-propaganda" you wish. But have the decency not to feed your slop to others.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday February 01 2019, @04:41AM
You didn't even answer the question. How is this propaganda? Medical rep gives lap dance to sell drugs, ooooh the brainwashing!
(Score: 2) by MichaelDavidCrawford on Thursday January 31 2019, @10:36PM
Kapoor was convicted in 2017 for reasons that also have to do with him being a drug pusher.
The testimony has already been given; criminal procedures can have Depositions too.
Please to be specific as to what about TFS or TFA made them Propaganda.
Yes I Have No Bananas. [gofundme.com]
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday January 31 2019, @11:27PM
t. doctor
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday January 31 2019, @09:52PM (1 child)
Oddly enough I was just watching a relevant documentary about why doctors do these sorts of things.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vfXs0m32A8E [youtube.com]
(Score: 2) by MichaelDavidCrawford on Thursday January 31 2019, @10:37PM
I'll have you know that many of my very best friends are strippers!
Say "Hi!" to Satori at Mary's Club for me, next time you visit PDX.
Yes I Have No Bananas. [gofundme.com]
(Score: 2) by MostCynical on Thursday January 31 2019, @10:12PM (1 child)
was the lap dance any good?
"I guess once you start doubting, there's no end to it." -Batou, Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex
(Score: 3, Touché) by Alfred on Thursday January 31 2019, @10:34PM
(Score: 2) by MichaelDavidCrawford on Thursday January 31 2019, @10:40PM
"Controlled Substance".
While a step in the right direction that the US no longer permits refills of controlled substances but requires a new dead-tree script every single time, that Canada's prescriptions are numbered enabled them to fight Doctor Shopping.
Yes I Have No Bananas. [gofundme.com]
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday January 31 2019, @11:01PM (3 children)
I don't think this is a case of a sales director providing a lap dance. I think this is Insys recruiting their sales directors from a very specific subset of the population with great "persuasive" skills. Just a case of knowing your audience, I guess.
(Score: 3, Informative) by NewNic on Thursday January 31 2019, @11:50PM
https://www.exploretalent.com/resume/sunriselee/306292 [exploretalent.com]
"Acting / Modeling Profile"
lib·er·tar·i·an·ism ˌlibərˈterēənizəm/ noun: Magical thinking that useful idiots mistake for serious political theory
(Score: 3, Informative) by NewNic on Thursday January 31 2019, @11:52PM (1 child)
I see this news outlet doesn't both with the niceties of here history:
They include Sunrise Lee, whom prosecutors have described as a former exotic dancer [scmp.com]
lib·er·tar·i·an·ism ˌlibərˈterēənizəm/ noun: Magical thinking that useful idiots mistake for serious political theory
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday February 01 2019, @09:37AM
current drug pusher
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday February 01 2019, @07:12PM (2 children)
I'm generally not a fan of ink. Certainly not for myself, and I don't even like to see it on other... but the first thought that came into my head is that this scene is just begging to be tattoo flash.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday February 01 2019, @08:09PM (1 child)
?? A doctor getting a lap dance? Who would want that tattooed on themselves?
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday February 02 2019, @01:59PM
Like flash of a panther ripping your skin open is any classier.
Tats are 99% trashy.