War on Doctors / Pain Crisis

DOJ Eyes Complaint vs. Fed. Prosecutor Treadway

Alexander DeLuca — Sat, 11 Jul 2009 15:34:32 +0000

"Ms. Treadway's conduct in the case has been nothing short of shocking and ruthless; she has in fact displayed the kind of 'win at all costs' mentality that you have publicly stated your department will no longer tolerate," Reynolds wrote in her June 18 letter to U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder... The ACLU has taken up the Reynolds defense in the grand jury proceedings, claiming in initial court papers that subpoenas sought by a "frustrated prosecutor seeking to silence a dissenting advocate" have a chilling effect on First Amendment rights.

PRN to Obama: Stop the War on Sick People

Alexander DeLuca — Tue, 19 May 2009 08:03:57 +0000

[Dr. Johnston's] case offers the Obama DOJ the rare chance to reaffirm the architectural structure of our federal system by joining in the PRN’s 10th Amendment-based request for a full hearing by the court. [Reynolds:] “The Administration can also show substantive empathy right away, for the 50 million Americans in pain currently being denied pain treatment by doctors terrorized by the [DEA]. These desperate Americans shouldn’t be made to wait for the President to appoint a new justice.”

ACLU Raises 1st Amendment Argument Over Subpoena

Alexander DeLuca — Wed, 13 May 2009 23:40:13 +0000

"Given the sweeping nature of the subpoenas here, their chilling effect on First Amendment rights, and the circumstances under which they were obtained - a frustrated prosecutor seeking to silence a dissenting advocate - this Court should quash the subpoenas as an unjustified infringement on Ms. Reynolds' and PRN's First Amendment rights," the ACLU wrote in its pleading.

ACLU: Block Govt’s Unconstitutional Attempt to Silence PRN

Alexander DeLuca — Sun, 10 May 2009 21:42:59 +0000

“I will not be intimidated and I will not be silenced,” said Reynolds, who founded PRN... “As I testified before Congress, an obsession with prescription drug abuse has resulted in the gross under-treatment of pain in this country. We have turned honest physicians and desperate patients into criminals, and policymakers and the public need to hear about it...”

ACLU Backs Reynolds’ Motion to Quash

Alexander DeLuca — Sat, 09 May 2009 15:43:56 +0000

These subpoenas constitute an abuse of the grand jury process... Because [Treadway's obstruction of justice] investigation lacks any good faith basis, Ms. Reynolds does not claim a Fifth Amendment privilege with respect to any of the materials sought by the subpoena.(1) Ms. Reynolds maintains that she has committed no crime and that there is nothing in the requested materials that could inculpate her in the obstruction of justice, witness tampering or jury tampering. For all of these reasons, this Court should quash the March 10 subpoenas issued to Siobhan Reynolds and PRN.

Dr. Johnston Files for Supreme Court Review

Alexander DeLuca — Mon, 04 May 2009 02:07:02 +0000

Dr. Sharon Johnston comes to this Court having been convicted of a crime that does not exist, by a court without jurisdiction to enter a conviction, and affirmed by a court that did not confirm that it had jurisdiction to do so and – worse yet – blatantly attempted to “bury” its decision through depublication... This entire proceeding has been indelibly painted with the bright and unmistakable color of unconstitutional outcome-driven caprice.

It’s About the Pain, Stupid

Alexander DeLuca — Sat, 02 May 2009 05:58:34 +0000

Maybe we all deserve the pain. If we are too stupid to understand that aspirin kills way more people than morphine, and that there are a whole lot worse things for you and your damn Federal prosecutors to worry about than if maybe your neighbor is getting too much pain relief (sheesh!) - if you are that effin stupid then maybe you deserve the chronic pain which YOUR government has already imposed on you and your children as the defacto law of the land.

Drug Control? No, Citizen Control

Alexander DeLuca — Mon, 20 Apr 2009 12:30:32 +0000

We keep hearing about how the War on Drugs has failed. But the truth is, the War on Drugs has been tremendously successful, that is if you wanted your country to be a police state, your Congress completely unresponsive to the needs of the people, and your doctors letting you and your loved ones live and die in unnecessary pain.

Who is Obstructing Justice in Kansas?

Alexander DeLuca — Wed, 15 Apr 2009 04:21:04 +0000

AUSA Treadway wants to drag Ms. Reynolds before a Grand Jury for, get this, obstruction of justice! in the case of U.S. v Dr. Schneider. If we were not talking about the mockery of American justice Bush appointees routinely make in cases like Schneider and Shaygan this would be really funny. Siobhan Reynolds is obstructing justice? Utter nonsense. It is prosecutor Treadway for the USA who, if not obstructing justice in this case, is surely doing everything she can to delay it.

Govt. Acknowledges Misconduct in US v Shaygan

Alexander DeLuca — Wed, 01 Apr 2009 00:23:56 +0000

Review of the outcome of the Shaygan Govt Misconduct hearings in which Dr. Shaygan's Govt. Prosecutors concede to witness tampering and violation of discovery obligations to the defense, amongst other offenses. Link to PDF of Govt's Response brief to Shaygan's Motions for Sanctions.

“Flagrant Violations” by Shaygan Prosecutors

Alexander DeLuca — Fri, 20 Mar 2009 03:25:01 +0000

Shaygan's attorney Markus discovered that govt prosecutors authorized two witnesses to surreptitiously record conversations with the defense team and attempt to bribe Markus, and failed to disclose that the witnesses were paid, confidential informants for the DEA. U.S. District Judge Gold said there were "flagrant violations" of basic rules by Shaygan's prosecutors, and that "important safeguards were not met." An order from Gold is expected in a few weeks.

Dr. Shaygan Acquitted of Drug Trafficking

Alexander DeLuca — Sun, 15 Mar 2009 19:59:51 +0000

Wow. To win acquittal on federal drug trafficking charges is very difficult and very rare, as I have [discussed before][rm]. A resounding win is almost unheard of. I will be very interested in the outcome of the prosecutorial misconduct case being brought by Dr. Shaygan's defense attorney, Mr. Markus.

Principles of Opioid Management of Pain

adeluca — Thu, 12 Mar 2009 21:38:47 +0000

I am republishing these “Principles of Opioid Management of Pain“, by Dr. Joel Hochman, et al., because of the explosion of deeply flawed and misguided “Guidelines” for pain management in recent years. This document stands alone in meeting the (textbook, ‘responsible physician’) standard for pain management while not violating core ethical obligations of the doctor-patient relationship and is useful, I think, for comparison when studying promulgated Guidelines. [See also: The Distortion of Medicine and Confusion of Standards]

Update on Behalf of Jailed Dr. Mangino

Alexander DeLuca — Thu, 05 Feb 2009 18:21:24 +0000

Excerpt: "Dr. Mangino has been unjustly prosecuted and convicted in Pennsylvania. His case is unusual. He is currently incarcerated at SCI-Cresson... Essentially, in PA and nationwide, if this conviction is allowed to stand on the grounds presented by prosecution, then any single opioid prescription can be deemed illegal." -- Dr. Mangino

Abstinence vs. Harm Reduction: a False Dichotomy

Alexander DeLuca — Thu, 15 Jan 2009 22:57:49 +0000

"The practice of medicine IS the practice of harm reduction. It is a fundamental principle of medical care that the patient has the right to disagree, to be non-compliant, to choose a path or a goal other than the one we might desire for them. The physician’s job is to do everything possible to help such a patient do the best he can, to minimize harm since, at least temporarily, it cannot be eliminated. Only in addiction medicine is it insisted that patients and staff hew to a ‘philosophy’ of ‘total abstinence’ rather than support appropriately individualized goals."

Morphine: Someday, a Cure for Pain

Alexander DeLuca — Thu, 15 Jan 2009 05:19:52 +0000

youTube music video of the a group named Morphine playing a song called "Cure for Pain" live. Beautiful sound, good lyrics; RIP, Mark Sandman.

The Distortion of Medicine and Confusion of Standards

Alexander DeLuca — Wed, 31 Dec 2008 03:02:12 +0000

In pain medicine we have the deeply disturbing situation that what most doctors do (medical community norm) is at odds with, and clearly below, the medical standard of care. Literally, in the treatment of chronic pain, an ethical physician attempting to practice in good faith, according to the clinical literature, is an outlier deviating from how most reputable physicians would practice.

Highly Recommended Pages…

Alexander DeLuca — Mon, 29 Dec 2008 20:16:26 +0000

Take a moment to scan one or two of these Highly Recommended documents… good background reading for any serious student of the war on docs and the pain crisis.

A Critical Assessment of the Impact of Drug Testing Programs on the American Workplace is a good review of this important related drug war topic that is currently in the news (govt push to drug test high school students);

War on Drugs, War on Doctors, and the Pain Crisis in America — this is probably THE CORE document; if you only read one article on my sites, let it be this one. This paper is my best attempt to date at putting our current nightmare into historical, epidemiological, and ethical context;

War on Pain Sufferers Special Collections — These are intended to be timely and time-saving resources especially for journalists, researchers, and students

Finally, on the substance use disorders side a few gems:
1. Abstinence vs. Harm Reduction - a False Dichotomy is probably the best thing I’ve ever written, and,
2. The Controlled Drinking Debates - a Review of Four Decades of Acrimony, by Dr. Brook Hersey, is a simply phenomenal article - scholarly yet eminently readable - covering our fascinating, peculiarly American, relationships with alcohol.

Criminalization of Pain Management

Frank Fisher — Fri, 19 Dec 2008 12:54:47 +0000

Many physicians are concerned that prescribing opioid analgesics in chronic pain treatment is accompanied by an unacceptable risk of unwarranted prosecution. The validity of this fear is evaluated by examining the standards through which physicians are targeted and prosecuted. Prohibition law is identified as an error in social policy that distorts medical standards.

Pain Docs, Drug War Scapegoats, Speak Out

Alexander DeLuca — Thu, 11 Dec 2008 03:41:03 +0000

I am very glad to see physicians, who have themselves been savaged by the government, publishing their stories. Consider Dr. Jackson’s article, Conviction without a Crime, to be a companion piece to Dr. Rottschaefer’s article discussed in the previous item here, The Criminal Criminal Justice System. Together these two articles will give the reader a good sense, I think, of the utter breakdown of professional ethics, common sense, and fairness in any case involving controlled substances.