Doctor says Walgreens discriminates - Secure Keysnews

THE KEY WEST CITIZEN ◆ SATURDAY, APRIL 20, 20133AMILE MARKERSKEY WESTEvent benefits local foster kidsKEY WESTFuturistic vessel in portKEY LARGOKEY WESTChocolate needed for cancer benefitAs part of the 31st Conch RepublicIndependence Celebration, the all-womenmilitary division, called the CIA (Cuties inAction) will host the “Military Muster” from6-8 p.m. Monday at The Gardens Hotel.The event is a gathering of the ConchRepublic military divisions. Inductees aresworn in and anyone wishing to join a divisioncan come and sign up for duty. Officersfrom the Conch Republic Navy, Air force,Army and CIA will be ready for action. Andthere will be surprise VIP attendees.Admission is free and open to the public.There will be food, libations, musicand other events with proceeds going tothe Foster Children’s Fund. The ConchRepublic Foster Children’s Fund wasfounded about 15 years ago and is nowrun by Wesley House Family Services.The high-speed vessel Swiftarrived at Key West’s Outer MolePier Friday afternoon and willbe in town for training and demonstrationsof its unique capabilitiesin counter drug operations,according to a Navy pressrelease.The HSV2 Swift is a high-speed(35 knots), shallow-draft vesselthat is ideal for helicopter operations,according to the Navy. Thevessel is in Key West also to showNavy officials flight tests of a newunmanned blimp and unmannedaerial vehicle that also could beused in counter drug operations.Homeported at Mayport NavalStation in Jacksonville, the HSV2Swift operates under Naval ForcesSouthern Command 4th Fleet.Photo courtesy of Monroe County Sheriff’s OfficeSeven Cuban migrants were picked up on a small island offshoreof Key Largo around noon on Friday. They were turned over toagents from Customs and Border Protection. All seven weremales and in good health. Seven other male Cuban migrantswere handed over to CBP Thursday morning after arriving nearMile Marker 95.5.The 11th Annual Willie Wonka ChocolateFestival takes place from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. April28 at the Southernmost House overlooking theAtlantic Ocean at the end of Duval Street.The event benefits the Cancer Foundation ofthe Florida Keys, and depends on the generosityand kindness of local businesses and individualsfor monetary and in-kind contributions for thechocolate extravaganza.Homemade or store-bought chocolate treatsare requested for the enjoyment of hundredsof people, young and old, savoring chocolate totheir heart’s content.Admission is $10 and all proceeds benefit theCancer Foundation, an all-volunteer grassrootsnonprofit dedicated to helping cancer patientswhile they are in treatment. Funds are given tothe patients to help with mortgage, rent and billpayments.For information or to make a donation, callDoria Goodrich at 305-293-7104.ClaimContinued from Page 1Aties, senior citizens, African-Americans with disabilitiesand “physician members of thecommunity.”Gerth, who has practicedmedicine in the Lower Keys for22 years and ten years prior tothat having never been disciplinedor sued, ended the letterby saying he has personalknowledge of “these issues andthere are many patients whoare willing to corroborate.”On Friday, Vogel said shecouldn’t comment on Gerth’sletter and said her office isreviewing it but hasn’t yet madeany decisions on the doctor’srequest.“I’ll certainly take a look atthe letter,” Vogel said.Ferrer’s office wouldn’t commentat all, said spokeswomanAlicia Valle, not even to confirmit received the letter.Gerth said he hadn’t hearda response to his letters as ofFriday, adding, “it’s too early.”Walgreens corporate headquartersis telling doctors it issimply following instructionsfrom the Drug EnforcementAdministration, which monitorspharmacies for theamounts of oxycodone andother pills that are bought andsold on the street.“Our pharmacists areLindorContinued from Page 1ALindor submitted as many as 700suspicious claims on behalf of lowincomeworkers in South Florida whoeach paid him $300 to process theirclaims, according to court records.Many of the workers who allegedlyfiled with Lindor worked in Key LargoROBERT YOUNGFERNANDEZRobert Young Fernandez, Sr.,passed away on April 16, 2013.He was 82, born Oct. 19, 1930.He was preceded in death byhis wife of more than 50 years,Dorothy Betty-Jean MarshallFernandez of Nashville, Tenn.,and his parents, Oscar YoungFernandez and ValentinaAngelina Fernandez, both ofKey West. He was their onlychild. He is survived by hissons Robert Jr. (Susan) ofTallahassee, Fla., Frank (Pam)of Elizabeth City, N.C. and Tonyof Key West and his daughterMary Jane of Tallahassee, Fla.He also has 11 grandchildrenand 12 great-grandchildren.Bob or “RF” as most knewhim served in the Air ForceEmail yourHealth Notesnews andphotos tonewsroom@keysnews.comrequired to take additionalsteps when verifying certainprescriptions for controlledsubstances,” a generic formletter to from “Your WalgreensPharmacist” states. “Potentialquestions could include informationabout the diagnosis ...expected length of therapy andprevious medications/therapiestried and failed.”Federal law places theresponsibility on such prescriptionssquarely on theprescribing doctor, but adds a“corresponding responsibility”with the pharmacist who fillsthe prescription.A pharmacist “knowingly filling”an illegitimate prescriptionis subject to penalties, thelaw says.Gerth has called Walgreens’approach a violation of healthprivacy laws. But Walgreenssays its pharmacists fall underthe law’s definition of a “healthcareprofessional” providingcare to the patient.“Privacy laws allow you toshare this information withanother healthcare professionalwho is providing care to thepatient,” the Walgreens formletter to doctors says.The brief letter, dated April15 and obtained by The Citizenthis week, is written on letterheadfrom the New TrumanMedical Center, with officesat 540 Truman Ave. and 2505Flagler Ave., and employingOBITUARYfrom 1950 to1954 after whichhe attended Cleavite ReasearchInstitute in Miami to continuehis education while working atHerman Electronics. He movedhis family back to Key Westand opened RF Electronics onBertha Street until he becamethe electronics teacher at KeyWest High School in 1974. Heretired in 1996 and had recentlymoved to Tallahassee, Fla., duePaid obituaries are published onceunless the family or funeral home iswilling to pay for reruns. Obituaries up tosix inches are $65; $75 with a photo.Those more than six inches will becharged $10 an inch. Free death noticesOBITUARY POLICYDrs. Gerth, Timothy Mackeyand Gilbert Shapiro.Shapiro in March 2012 losthis prescription privileges formany controlled opiates afterthe Florida Surgeon Generalopened an investigation after acomplaint.The investigation remainspending and Shapiro’s medicallicense was never touched.Shifting demandand Islamorada, records state.U.S. Attorneys told jurors Lindor usedground mail and the Internet to submitrequired forms and other documents,which included false employment andtax documents, according to the indictment.Prosecutors allege Lindor also filed aclaim stating his hours at the Coalition ofFlorida Farm Workers Organizations werecut because of the spill.to poor health. RF loved to gofishing and help at the church.He also would talk about and tohis many fruit trees and plantsthat he tended to everyday. Hehad quite the green thumb.In lieu of flowers, donationsshould be made to the StainedGlass Restoration Fund of GraceLutheran Church, 2713 FlaglerAve., Key West, Fla.list only the name of the person whodied and where services will be held.Obituaries may be edited to conformwith Citizen style and usage. E-mailedsubmissions are preferred. Send them tonewsroom@keysnews.com.Otis Radloff Anderson Jr.4/16/1998 - 4/6/2013We mourn the passing ofour gentle boy. Known forhis kind soul and awesomebirthday parties!Loved by many on his islandhome, he will be deeplymissed by all.Especially Dennis and JimAt issue is the increasingscrutiny that pharmacies havebeen applying before fillingprescriptions for highly addictivemedications such as oxycodone,hydrocodone andmorphine.In the wake of the statewidecrackdown on pill mills, whosesheer volume of oxycodoneand other drugs gave Floridathe nickname “the OxycontinExpress,” law enforcement iskeeping tabs on physicianswhile the demand for the painkillershas shifted to pharmacies.Florida is a crime sceneinvestigation when it comesto prescription pill abuse,with the Drug EnforcementAdministration widening itsprobe from illegal pill mills,where Oxycontin is sold undersketchy medical information,to private physicians and pharmacies.Last year the DEA raided severalSouth Florida Walgreens,searching for evidence showingthat painkillers were looselydispensed.The investigation led tothe government barring theWalgreens shipping center inJupiter from dealing in oxycodoneand other controlled opiates.Walgreens sued the DEA, losingthe first court round andin March argued before a U.S.appellate court in Washington,D.C. that the DEA based itsdecisions on outdated information.The DEA accused Walgreensof knowingly filling questionableorders for the powerfulopiates.“Even when managers recognizedthat orders plainly raisedsuspicions, they continuedto make shipments withoutconducting inquiries,” JusticeDepartment attorneys stated ina brief filed with the court.Between 2009 and 2012,Walgreens Jupiter was the singlelargest distributor of oxycodonein Florida, with 52 ofthe stores among the top 100buyers of oxycodone statewide,the DEA said.Drug abuse persistsAt the same time, Floridaremains one of the top stateswhen it comes to pill addiction.The false claims were filed through thenow-closed Gulf Coast Claims Facility,which was formed by BP and the governmentafter the 2010 Deepwater Horizonspill in the Gulf of Mexico.The scheme was revealed by undercoverFBI agents who infiltrated his Homesteadcompany called Noula Inc., located at 233SW Fourth St. in Homestead, according tocourt records.alinhardt@keysnews.com355170Free drop off service.Drop off your taxes andpick up some free time.We know you’re busy. That’s why we’remaking it easier to get your taxes donequickly and conveniently. Simply drop off yourtax documents at H&R Block and your taxprofessional will prepare your return and callyou with any questions or when your returnis ready. Our FREE drop off service is justone of the extras we offer. Because gettingeverything you deserve should include gettingit in a way that fi ts your life.Personal ~ Business ~Bookkeeping925 Toppino Dr.Key West, FL 33040Phone: 305-294-3525Mon-Fri 9:00 am - 9:00 pmSat 10:00 am - 4:00 pm3818116167 Overseas HwyMarathon FL 33050Phone: 305-743-5950Mon-Fri 9:00 am to 6:00 pmSat 9:00 am to 1:00 pmFeast your eyeson our onlinephoto galleries:Local news,sports, eventsand weeklytop photos.The city of Key West thisweek began putting into placezoning laws that would heavilyrestrict pain management clinics,despite the fact that thereare none on the island.City Planner Don Craigbegan working on the zoninga year ago, after fieldinga couple of calls from partiesinterested in setting up shopin Key West.“Rates of prescription drugabuse in the U.S. are alarminglyhigh, as are the numberof accidental poisonings andoverdoses due to these drugs,”city spokeswoman AlysonCrean said Thursday in a pressrelease. “Studies show that amajority of abused prescriptiondrugs are obtained from familyand friends, including from thehome medicine cabinet.”The release announced yetanother “Take Back” event inKey West, set for Saturday, April27.From 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.that day, the Key West PoliceDepartment and the DEA willbe at Bayview Park offering todispose of anyone’s unwantedprescription drugs.“Bring your medicationsfor disposal to the gazebo atBayview Park,” Crean said. “Theservice is free and anonymous,no questions asked.”Last September, Americansturned in 244 tons of prescriptiondrugs at some 5,200 sitesset up by the DEA and state andlocal law enforcement, Creansaid.In five previous Take Backevents, the haul was more than2 million pounds, or 1,000 tons,of pills.gfilosa@keysnews.com• NILESAUTO.COM • NILESAUTO.COM • NILESAUTO.COM • NILESAUTO.COM •CAR OF THE DAYThe 2007 lexusES 350NILESAUTO.COM • NILESAUTO.COM • NILESAUTO.COM • NILESAUTO.COM • NILESAUTO.COM • NILESAUTO.COMCall it Class with Sass, with just aboutevery high-tech safety feature andinterior anuity one could possibly want.see or believe it!382455• NILESAUTO.COM • NILESAUTO.COM • NILESAUTO.COM • NILESAUTO.COM •CITIZEN OF THE DAYROB O’NEAL/The CitizenDoreen Venette came to the Florida Keys two years ago fromMiddletown, N.J., and fishes commercially for stone crabs.Venette also works at the famed Stuffed Pig restaurant inMarathon where she said she meets an amazing cross-sectionof people. When not working, Venette enjoys spending time atSombrero Beach. ‘Who doesn’t love the Keys?’ she asked.NILESAUTO.COM • NILESAUTO.COM • NILESAUTO.COM • NILESAUTO.COM • NILESAUTO.COM • NILESAUTO.COM