A federal court has permanently prohibited a Sandusky, Ohio-area physician from prescribing opioids and other controlled substances, ordering him to pay $4.7 million in a case alleging violations of the Controlled Substances Act (CSA) and the False Claims Act (FCA).
In a civil complaint filed in August 2018, the United States alleged that Gregory Gerber, MD, age 59, of Port Clinton, Ohio, unlawfully issued prescriptions without a legitimate medical basis for opioids and other controlled substances. The complaint also claimed that one patient died from an overdose of fentanyl patches prescribed by Gerber. Additionally, it was alleged that Gerber received kickback payments from a drug manufacturer as part of a scheme to unlawfully prescribe Subsys, an opioid drug containing fentanyl.
“Medical professionals who knowingly facilitate the abuse of opioids violate their legal obligations,” said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Brian Boynton. “The department will pursue justice against anyone who seeks to profit from unlawfully prescribing opioids.”
“All doctors must follow the law when prescribing opioids — their patients, and the public more generally, rely on such compliance,” stated U.S. Attorney Rebecca C. Lutzko for the Northern District of Ohio. “Gerber’s patients trusted him. But instead of safeguarding that trust, Gerber accepted payments from a drug company in exchange for prescribing dangerous, addictive drugs and wrote thousands of prescriptions that were not for a legitimate medical purpose.”
“Dr. Gerber betrayed the trust placed in him and willfully violated his oath to protect the public,” said Special Agent in Charge Orville O. Greene of the DEA’s Detroit Field Division.
“Health care professionals who exploit opioid addiction for financial gain do so at the risk of endangering their patients,” noted Deputy Inspector General Christian J. Schrank.
“Ignoring the law by distributing prescriptions to opioids for illicit profit harms communities,” added Executive Assistant Director Michael D. Nordwall of the FBI’s Criminal Branch.
Gerber agreed to a consent judgment to settle these allegations. The court order permanently prohibits him from prescribing or managing any entity that dispenses controlled substances and requires him to pay approximately $4.7 million under the FCA. In March, he was sentenced to 42 months in prison and one year of home confinement in a related criminal case.
U.S. District Judge Jeffrey J. Helmick entered this judgment and permanent injunction in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Ohio.
The DEA, FBI, HHS-OIG, Ohio Attorney General’s Medicaid Fraud Control Unit, State Board of Pharmacy and State Medical Board investigated this case.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Patricia Fitzgerald and Angelita Cruz Bridges along with Trial Attorney Scott B. Dahlquist handled this case.
The claims made are allegations that would need proof by preponderance if proceeded to trial.
