According to this order, beginning in July of 2004 through September of 2005 (when McMullen finally removed Hughes and reported her to the TNB) Hughes began forging at least 50 triplicate prescriptions of Level II drugs. According to the DEA, here is how Schedule II drugs are described.
A) The drug or other substance has a high potential for abuse.
(B) The drug or other substance has a currently accepted medical use in treatment in the United States or a currently accepted medical use with severe restrictions.
(C) Abuse of the drug or other substances may lead to severe psychological or physical dependence.
Some examples of Schedule II drugs are morphine, cocaine, oxycodone (Percodan®), methylphenidate (Ritalin®), and dextroamphetamine (Dexedrine®). In fact, Schedule II drugs are the most potent and addictive drugs that can be prescribed. The only thing more potent is Schedule I which includes such drugs as heroin, marijuana, LSD, PCP, and crack cocaine.
While her motives for this mass forgery was never revealed in the report, the sheer quantity of the drugs leads to all sorts of speculations including chronic personal use and/or selling.
Furthermore, according to this order, on December 11, 2006, Hughes admitted that shea an addiction to Hydrocodone and she had that addiction since December of 2003.
While what Hughes was found to have done was indeed shocking, what is really shocking is the punishment (or lack thereof) that the TNB handed down. Keep in mind that everything I just listed was stipulated as fact by the TNB and Hughes herself. For forging 50 Schedule prescriptions and maintaining a near three year addiction to Hydrocodone Hughes "Voluntarily surrendered her license to prescribe medicine" for one year. Hughes voluntarily surrendered her license to prescribe medicine for one year as part of a sort of probation that could have meant the end of her license to practice nursing entirely with further violations.
This rather light punishment is shocking and peculiar. It is even more peculiar in light of the draconian punishment the TNB handed down to Tim Goosby. Goosby had not reported an earlier DUI to the TNB when he first came to work in the state of Texas. For this violation, Goosby had his nursing license removed for one year, and he could only apply, though was not guaranteed, to have it reinstated. Hughes forged at least 50 prescriptions for the most addictive drugs that can be prescribed and admitted to a near three year drug addiction. For this, she "voluntarily surrendered her license to prescribe drugs". Keep in mind that during this year, she still maintained gainful employment as a nurse.
How did all of this come about? Another piece of this puzzle is the doctor that employed Hughes when the TNB rendered its findings, Dr. Keith Miller. Dr. Miller was also then a doctor in Center, Texas, however he was also concurrently head of the Texas Medical Board's Disciplinary Committee. ( I have written multiple pieces about Dr. Miller's involvement in corruption within the Texas medical community) While there is no direct evidence that Dr. Miller played any role in Hughes rather light sentence, there are several things we can conclude. First, Dr. Miller hired Bridget Hughes despite knowing full well that her previous employer, Dr. McMullen, had caught her forging at least fifty prescriptions for extremely addictive drugs. She admitted to continuing to being addicted to Hydrocodone even while she was employed by Miller himself. Yet, despite all of this, she continued to be in his employment and in fact continues in his employment today.
Finally, the story took another bizarre turn in April of 2008, less than a month before her one year "voluntary surrender of her license to prescribe drugs" expired. A source tells me that an undercover agent was sent into see Bridget Hughes posing as a patient. This undercover agent witnessed Hughes not only prescribe drugs to them but Hughes called the prescription into the local CVS herself. All of this was in direct violation of Hughes order.
Hughes was reported to the TNB but she faced no further punishment. In fact, she is now allowed to prescribe drugs and faces no more sanctions from the TNB. In fact, not only has she faced no more sanctions from the TNB, no other investigative agency in Shelby County or the state of Texas has ever brought charges against her. After all, forging prescriptions is illegal and just compare how she was treated by law enforcement to say Rush Limbaugh. Furthermore, to understand how truly corrupt her case was handled by the TNB just compare her situation again to Tim Goosby. Given that she worked at the time for Dr. Keith Miller, then head of the Texas Medical Board Disciplinary Committee, this presents strong evidence that the corruption in medicine in Texas is widespread and systemic.
It's the celebrity punity effect - they want to make an example of limbaugh, but they don't care about a prolific pill-popping nurse that no one has heard about. Kinda like what happened to martha stewart.
ReplyDeleteNarcotic prosecution is consistently inconsistent in this country.
true, and frankly irrelevant. If you read this story, and thought that this is proof that narcotics prosecution is unequal then I didn't do a very good job of laying out the facts.
ReplyDeleteBridget Hughes forged at least fifty prescriptions of drugs like oxycondone. She went to pharmacies took ownership of said prescriptions herself even though they were in someone else's name. Furthermore, she admitted to having a near three year addiction to another pharmaceutical. For this, she merely voluntarily surrendered her license to write prescriptions for one year.
This is not about disparity of prosecution but CORRUPTION.
I agree, it's appalling. But it's just one of innumerable examples of corruption. It's impossible to have a corruption-free system. Humans are naturally greedy and competitive. If there's a way to get more money easily, people will give in. The parties involved here acted in their self-interest. If the nurse was penalized severely for her crimes, then it would have reflected badly upon the doctors that employed her - not to mention that the evidence of their corruption would be languishing in a jail cell and might strike a deal.
ReplyDeleteNot exactly, the doctor that employed her for most of the malfeasance was the one that reported her. He confirmed this to me himself. Again, she was employed by Dr. Keith Miller who was head of the Texas Medical Board's Disciplinary Committee. I have written about much of his corruption and there is plenty. This happened because the entire Texas medical system is corrupt. As such, good doctors are targeted, which I have also written about. In the meanwhile, someone like Hughes has almost nothing done to her for gross violations.
ReplyDeleteFurthermore, this corruption goes on because the media doesn't report on it. Why didn't the media report on this?
There could be plenty of reasons the media didn't report it. Someone could have been paid off, someone related to the incident might have media connections which he used to stifle any reporting, or perhaps the media didn't find it a particularly worthwhile story. Besides, to explain a lot of this, you have to go into the history of the corruption, and that would take some doing. The media might have had other stories to follow, ones that they deemed would draw more viewers.
ReplyDeleteUnlike you, I don't need to guess because I have spoken to most of the particulars in this case and other cases surrounding it and the media doesn't cover any of them, and it isn't because good folks haven't made themselves available to the media.
ReplyDeleteIn fact, one of the reasons I am in a position to have all of these sources is because these folks tried mainstream sources and hit dead ends.
The bottom line is that the media is in on the corruption. I don't know exactly why the refuse to report these stories, and I don't care. It isn't because there isn't a story to tell. Here we have a nurse committing crimes and she isn't dismissed and she continues to be a nurse. At the same time, doctors are systematically targeted with trumped up charges. This is a corrupt system and it happens because the media has turned a blind eye to it.
In 2002, the Dallas Morning News ran a series pointing out how the Texas Medical Board Disciplinary Committee wasn't aggressively pursuing doctors. As a result of that story, the TMB gained license and they began pursuing doctors very aggressively, only many times they were simply targeting doctors. Yet, the Dallas Morning News has conveniently not reported on the after effects of their story.
Medical corruption is one of the most underreported stories in the media and I don't think it is any coincidence that you will find sponsorship in the media from much of the medical industry.
Dear Mike, I'm a friend of Shirley Pigott. Have you written a piece on Dr. Lawrence Poliner whose case might go to the US Supreme court? Here is a tragedy of national proportion. Talk to Eric Grosch, he can tell you about the corrupt HCQIA (healthcare quality improvement act)
ReplyDeleteDo you only write about doctors/individuals in Texas?
I was thinking that a victim can tell his story to you and if you write the story, that victim may be shielded from SLAPP lawsuits.
Rene Umali MD
northern California
530 917 1156
victim of sham peer review in California
nospr1234@gmail.com
In my view, the entire premise of law-enforcement against habituating drugs is corrupt, misdirected and calculated to divert tax-revenues into corporate coffers, similarly to any war, including the so-called War on Terrorism. Manufacturers of planes, helicopters, uniforms, guns, bombs, meals-ready-to-eat, boots, the registration-bureaucracy etc., all the paraphernalia applied to fight the so-called War on Drugs, generate more and more diverted revenues, via lucrative, no-bid governmental contracts, a form of corporate welfare. It also generates the inequities cited in the article and many others. Return to the 19th-century practice of vending opium and its congeners over the counter would be salutary. The very definition of "addiction" is vague and circular. An element of it is "euphoria," which is defined, roughly, as feeling better than one's condition would lead one to believe one should. Well, consider a cancer-patient, suffering from excruciating back-pain from bony metastases to the spine. If he or she takes a narcotic that eases the pain, he or she feels better than his or her condition would lead one to believe he or she should, so the relief of pain of an origin that one can attribute to a physical cause is, therefore, "euphoria," and a patient whose pain is so relieved fulfills one of the elements of "addiction." Another is seeking the drug to the point of "harm." We never learn what that means, exactly and making the definition of "addiction," which is presumably an internal condition, reliant on external consequences, is no definition at all. What objective blood-test defines "addiction?" There is none.
ReplyDeleteI know Bridget personally and knew her before all of this happened. She has been my primary care provider since the 90s and is now. This story blows things out of proportion. Its not like she went into work strung out. She has a wonderful reputation in Center and has a cult following. She is more respected than many doctors. She has went above and beyond the call of duty for my family and sees that we all get the best care. We love her.
ReplyDelete