Court orders physician prescribing opioids to pay $4.7 million

( NewsNation ) — A physician from the Ohio city of Sandusky has been ordered to pay $4.7 million after he willfully prescribed opioids and other controlled substances to patients.

The Office of Public Affairs announced the ruling Friday, wherein Dr. Gregory Gerber, MD violated the Controlled Substances Act (CSA) and the False Claims Act (FCA). Gerber agreed to a consent judgement.

He is prohibited from prescribing controlled substances as part of the federal court’s decision.

In a 2018 civil complaint filed by the United States against Gerber, it is alleged a patient died after he was prescribed fentanyl patches.

Gerber was allegedly also receiving kickbacks from a drug manufacture for illegally prescribing Subsys; an opioid containing fentanyl.

“Medical professionals who knowingly facilitate the abuse of opioids violate their legal obligations,” Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Brian Boynton, head of the Justice Department’s Civil Division said in the release.

“The department will pursue justice against anyone who seeks to profit from unlawfully prescribing opioids.”

In March, Gerber was sentenced to 42 months imprisonment and a year of home confinement in a related criminal case.

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