Pubdate: Sun, 07 Jul 2002
Source: Wisconsin Rapids Tribune (WI)
Copyright: 2002 2001, The Daily Tribune
Section: Central Wisconsin Sunday
Contact:  http://www.wisinfo.com/dailytribune/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/1609
Author: Karen Madden

INCREASED VIGILANCE LEADS TO MORE PRESCRIPTION-DRUG FRAUD ARRESTS

The number of prescription-drug fraud arrests in central Wisconsin has more 
than tripled in a year, largely because of increased awareness among 
pharmacists and doctors.

The Central Wisconsin Drug Task Force had 48 pharmaceutical-related arrests 
in 2001 compared with 14 in 2000. Out of the state's 32 task forces, the 
central Wisconsin group had the most pharmaceutical-related arrests by far, 
said Sterling Dewitt, Wisconsin Office of Justice Assistance.

Wisconsin Rapids Police Det. Phyllis Wesener said several factors are 
behind the number. Doctors are alert for suspicious activities, pharmacists 
question unusual prescriptions and both groups are reporting illegal 
activities. District attorneys also are willing to prosecute 
prescription-drug offenses, Wesener said.

Doctors are more aware of problems with patients trying to obtain drugs 
fraudulently, said Marshfield Police Chief Joseph Stroik. They aren't 
prescribing large quantities of addictive drugs, he said.

People who get involved with illegally taking prescription drugs don't 
think of themselves as "druggies" or "drug addicts" the way they think of 
people using marijuana or cocaine, Stevens Point Police Sgt. Mike Retzki 
said. The possession of any prescription drug without a prescription is 
illegal, Wesener said.

Drugs that get abused fall into three basic categories, Wesener said. There 
are stimulants, like Ritalin; central nervous system depressants, like 
Valium or Xanax; and opiates, or hard narcotics, like Percost.

Some people go to multiple doctors in different communities and complain of 
the same symptoms to get multiple prescriptions for the same drugs, and 
that's fraud, Wesener said.

The Stevens Point Police Department has initiated a Prescription Fraud 
Program in which doctors, pharmacists and police work together to catch 
people trying to get prescription drugs fraudulently, Retzki said.

As a result, tampering with prescriptions is going down, he said. However, 
as prescription fraud decreases, other means of getting drugs illegally 
increase.

Law enforcement sees nonmedical use or abuse of prescription drugs in every 
age group. "It's across the board," Wesener said. "I probably deal with as 
many adults as kids."

Part of the problem with stopping pharmaceutical-related crimes is that 
every case is different, Stroik said. For example:

. Last week in Stevens Point, officers solved a burglary in which the 
thief's purpose was to steal prescription drugs, Retzki said.

. A 45-year-old Port Edwards woman was sentenced to six months in jail on 
Monday for charges stemming from the theft of pain patches from people in a 
nursing home. She peeled open the patches and licked the gel from inside to 
"get high."

. A 16-year-old Stevens Point boy, waived into adult court, pleaded not 
guilty in Wood County Circuit Court on Monday to three counts of delivery 
of a controlled substance and two counts of delivery of a prescription 
medication without a prescription. The boy is accused of selling 
prescription drugs at a Wisconsin Rapids school. State and national 
agencies are increasingly aware of the problem.

Wesener has been selected by the national Drug Enforcement Administration 
to be the representative from Wisconsin at a two-week training session on 
nonmedical use or abuse of prescription drugs at the FBI Academy in 
Quantico, Va., from July 22 to Aug. 2.

"It's nice the DEA is recognizing the need to train local agencies in this 
area," Wesener said.
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom