Pubdate: Wed, 08 Dec 2004
Source: Orlando Sentinel (FL)
Copyright: 2004 Orlando Sentinel
Contact:  http://www.orlandosentinel.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/325
Author: Mark Hollis, Tallahassee Bureau

GRAND JURY INDICTS 2 IN DRUG SCHEME

A Miami Beach Doctor And His Aide Are Accused of Fraud And Prescribing 
Painkillers Illegally

TALLAHASSEE -- A Miami Beach doctor described by officials as the state's 
largest prescriber of OxyContin was accused Tuesday of illegally 
distributing the painkiller in a scheme dating back to June 2003.

Dr. Armando J. Solis and his assistant, Harold Fox, made court appearances 
in Miami on Tuesday after a grand jury in Miami unsealed a 15-count 
indictment charging the men with conspiracy to defraud Medicaid and illegal 
distribution of the powerful medication.

Attorney General Charlie Crist said Solis was the state's most prolific 
prescriber of OxyContin, having written more than $900,000 worth of 
prescriptions for the drug since 2000. In the past two years, more than 
$9.8 million in Medicaid drug costs have been subscribed under Solis' 
medical-license number, officials said.

"We believe that the evidence will show that Dr. Solis was a drug dealer in 
a white coat," Crist said.

Crist, Gov. Jeb Bush and officials involved in the investigation of the 
Miami Beach practice praised the arrests as a sign of the state's 
stepped-up efforts to go after medical professionals who illegally deal drugs.

The state's Medicaid Fraud Control Unit, a division of Crist's office, has 
made 43 arrests this year, stemming from 146 cases referred to that unit by 
state health regulators. Authorities said the investigation is ongoing, and 
they refused to answer any questions about the scope of their probe and 
whether other doctors, pharmacists and Medicaid recipients will be implicated.

Solis and Fox allegedly wrote prescriptions for drugs to Medicaid patients 
without properly determining the medical necessity for the pain relievers. 
In three incidents, Solis signed prescriptions for OxyContin and other 
drugs for several patients without even seeing the individuals, the 
indictment says. Health officials last year had taken Solis off a state 
list of Medicaid providers.

There are now more than 2,000 overdose deaths involving prescription drugs 
each year in Florida, said Jim McDonough, director of Florida's Office of 
Drug Control.

Solis and Fox could not be reached for comment. Their arrest and indictment 
were announced by authorities in Tallahassee, where lawmakers are gearing 
up to consider Medicaid reforms and cost cutting to the government's 
prescription-drug programs next year.

Last year, the Legislature balked at approving a drug-monitoring computer 
system to help investigators track down patients who have been shopping for 
multiple prescriptions and falsely billing the state's $14 billion Medicaid 
program.
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