Andrew Mark Ho, MD

http://doctorsofcourage.org/andrew-mark-ho-md/

On April 19, 2016, Denver internist, Andrew Mark Ho MD’s life turned upside down. This was the beginning of a Board of Medicine/Federal government collusion to put another good, innocent doctor in prison. He was coerced to stop practicing as a result of the BOM’s investigation of six patients and his prescribing benzodiazepines in combination with opioids. He agreed to stop practicing in lieu of a summary suspension of his license by the board. Meanwhile, the board continued the investigation against him for his evaluation and treatment of patients.

So what does Dr. Ho’s patients say about his care? Dr. Ho had exemplary patient statements on various websites of healthcare professionals. Here are some of them:

Dr. Andrew Ho is not replaceable. He is the only doctor who patiently spends as much time as i need to answer any and all questions, sometimes up to 30 minutes per visit. He understands my challenges of travelling up to 9 months a year overseas and shows compassion in all aspects of work and family.

Exceptional doctor. Best doctor I have ever seen. He’s the best. Listens to your problems and does everything he can to help you. Don’t want to part with this doctor.

Dr. Andrew Ho is the best internist I’ve ever had and I’ve lived all over the world the past 30 years. His greatest qualities are deep knowledge of current and traditional medicine, bedside manner and that he spends however much time I need to answer all questions with a very relaxed demeanor. He understands the issues of a world-traveler (my two prior back surgeries) who spends up to 9 months a year (3 weeks a month) overseas and only one week back home in Denver.

DR Ho is most unusual…..HE cares ….he listens to your words and treats you like an important person. He helps with any needs, is most informed on latest drugs and treatments. I feel honored to call him “MY DOCTOR”. He is kind, friendly and ready to help you heal. May God ALWAYS keep him in His care.

So the attack by the BOM prevented Dr. Ho from making a living for over two years. Then, the icing on the cake. On October 25, 2018, the Feds indict him using the Controlled Substance Act illegally. The indictment states:

“Andrew M. Ho, practicing internal medicine in Denver, Colorado, has been charged with distributing or dispensing controlled substances illegally between September of 2014 and November of 2015 outside the usual course of professional practice and for a purpose other than a legitimate medical purpose.”

This statement was by U.S. Attorney Bob Troyer. Since the CSA states in §802(56)(c), that only the doctor can determine legitimate medical practice, then it would appear that Mr. Troyer is practicing medicine without a license making that statement.  He should be the one charged and put in prison, along with all the other US Attorneys that are doing the same thing for money and promotions.

Doctors in America should stop prescribing controlled substances altogether. This attack on Dr. Ho shows that anyone is a potential target. Don’t be naïve and think that there is any safe practice in pain management. If it is the US Attorney’s office that is determining what is legitimate medical practice, then it is just a matter of who they want to target, whether for money or for ethnic cleansing of the medical profession.

The US Attorney’s press release also shows how they are targeting doctors. They have formed the Colorado U.S. Attorney’s Opioid Working Group. The indictment states the following about this group:

“It is comprised of expert civil and criminal staff in the U.S. Attorney’s Office who use sophisticated data analytics to identify doctors and pharmacies unlawfully dispensing opioids.”

What that actually means is that the group is simply DOJ staff, some possibly even without a high school education, who go through the prescription monitoring program for the state and choose doctors based on the numbers or types of prescriptions written. And now with the passing of H.R. 6 becoming Pub. L. 115-271, more doctors will be targeted by simply using prescription numbers.

Filed under: General Problems | 2 Comments »

News 4 Investigates: How a major retailer was making personal information easily accessible

https://www.kmov.com/news/news-investigates-how-a-major-retailer-was-making-personal-information/article_7f98db9c-dbe0-11e8-a0a3-fbc413d0ede0.html

ST. LOUIS (KMOV.com) – A major retailer was putting you at risk by making very personal information easily accessible.

Now a News 4 Investigation is getting results and a popular chain that you likely shop at all the time is making changes.

The retailer is Walgreens.

If you enter your number at the cash register, you can earn Balance Rewards from Walgreens, points that can total up to cash.

Recently, though, Trey Forester, from St. Charles County, made a startling discovery.

“It’s just ridiculous to me,” he said.

On the Walgreens website, you could enter in anyone’s phone number, and, if they’re a member of the rewards program, you could see exactly what they bought, when, where and for how much.

“You just need their phone number. It’s simple. Just a phone number,” Forester said.

Forester looked up a few friends.

“I didn’t tell him, but he had bought Rogaine. That’s not information you want people knowing,” Forester said.

News 4 took the issue to consumer experts who say it’s a huge breach of privacy.

“It’s really crazy,” said Cara Spencer.

Spencer works for the Consumer’s Council of Missouri and is also an elected official.

“For me, my phone number is public, that’s true of almost anyone these days,” she said.

Spencer says our purchases say a lot about what’s going on with us, items like itch cream, lice shampoo or adult diapers for example.

“It may be something you wouldn’t want your employer to see, friends or neighbors to know that you’re experiencing some sort of medical situation,” she said.

Or personal items, like pregnancy tests and condoms, could show an ex you’re moving on.

“If you are having a domestic situation, this could wind up putting you in real danger,” she said.

She says nothing about the balance rewards program made it clear that your data might be out there.

“Do you think it should change?” asked Investigative Reporter, Lauren Trager.

“Absolutely, I don’t think this should be so freely and readily available to the general public,” Spencer said.

Forester says he never got a sufficient response and he wanted answers.

“Are they going to fix the problem? Are they going to apologize for allowing this to happen?” he asked.

So News 4 took the issue directly to Walgreens corporate offices and that’s exactly what they did.

Less than two days after our inquiry about it, the website changed.

A spokesperson politely declined to do an interview. But they provided the following statement:

We take the privacy and security of our Balance Rewards members seriously. A recent enhancement…. on Walgreens.com inadvertently also allowed the potential viewing of some additional purchase activity associated with that account. We have taken immediate action to correct this issue. We apologize for any inconvenience this may have caused. 

Forester is relieved it’s resolved.

“It’s all we could talk about,” he said.

Walgreens says the issue has gone on since July.

After we brought this to their attention, Walgreens.com now prompts you to put in a password to see your purchase history.

We checked with other retailers, they require the same thing.

Filed under: General Problems | Leave a Comment »

AG Sessions calls for state medical board ‘to be more aggressive’ in opioid crisis

Sessions says medical boards failed to act quickly

https://www.news5cleveland.com/news/local-news/investigations/ag-sessions-calls-for-state-medical-board-to-be-more-aggressive-in-opioid-crisis

Filed under: General Problems | 7 Comments »

New opioid law aims to cut down on abuse, but some say it hurts those who need pain medication

https://www.tulsaworld.com/homepagelatest/new-opioid-law-aims-to-cut-down-on-abuse-but/article_3e2688ef-dd99-5275-bd75-c0413e694bd3.html

Filed under: General Problems | 2 Comments »

Common Blood Pressure Medication Linked To Increased Risk Of Lung Cancer

https://www.forbes.com/sites/robertglatter/2018/10/27/common-blood-pressure-medication-linked-to-increased-risk-of-lung-cancer/#410f621c7b4e

Based on results of an observational study published earlier this week in The BMJ, angiotensin-converting-enzyme (ACE) inhibitors were associated with an increased risk of lung cancer, compared with a similar, but distinct type of blood pressure medication known as angiotensin-receptor blockers (ARBs).

Lisinopril, molecular model. Drug of the angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitor class used to treat hypertension, congestive heart failure and heart attacks. Atoms are represented as spheres and are colour-coded: carbon (grey), hydrogen (white), nitrogen (blue) and oxygen (red). (Courtesy of Getty Images)

Researchers from Boise ENT evaluated patients from a U.K. primary care database and identified over 900,000 adults who began treatment with any type of blood pressure medication from 1995 through 2015. They excluded those with any history of cancer.

Over 335,000 patients were treated with ACE inhibitors, 29,000 with ARBs, and 101,000 with both an ACE and ARB inhibitor. Ramipril (26%) was the most common ACE noted in the study, along with lisinopril (12%) and perindopril (7%).

Over a follow-up period of 6 years, lung cancer was diagnosed in 0.8% (7,952) of this 900,000-person cohort. After taking into consideration smoking and other potential confounding factors, ACE inhibitor use was associated with a 14 % greater risk for lung cancer relative to ARB use (1.6 vs. 1.2 per 1000 person-years). In a secondary analysis, use of an ACE inhibitor for less than 5 years was not associated with an elevated risk for lung cancer.

However, the study noted that the elevated risk didn’t become evident until a patient had been on an ACE inhibitor for 5 years , but did increase with greater than 10 years of use (31% increased risk).

In their study, researchers explained that use of ACE inhibitors results in accumulation of bradykinin in the lungs , which “has been reported to stimulate growth of lung cancer.” ACE inhibitor use may also result in elevated levels of a compound known as substance P, produced in lung cancer cells and related to growth of the tumor and its associated blood vessels.

In light of such data, it’s important for the public to understand that this is only an observational study–not a randomized double blind placebo controlled study–making the absolute risk to patients low. But data indicates that ACE inhibitors account for nearly a third of all blood pressure medications prescribed in the UK, making the results a potential concern for a large number of patients.

While ACE inhibitors have been highly effective medications used to treat high blood pressure in the short term, there have been concerns raised about the safety of their long term use, specifically related to elevated risk of lung cancer.

Moreover, observational studies have led to mixed findings (related to actual lung cancer risk vs. overall risk of cancer), with no clear consensus to date, and meta-analyses of randomized controlled trials have not found evidence of elevated cancer risk, due to small sample size and length of follow-up (median of 3.5 years) compromising validity of findings.

Important limitations of the study that should be mentioned include lack of information about socioeconomic status, diet, exposure to asbestos or radon, as well as family history of lung cancer for patients enrolled in the study. The authors also did not have detailed information regarding number of pack-years of smoking, an important risk factor for incidence of lung cancer.

That said, there is biochemical evidence demonstrating a possible association between ACE inhibitor use and risk of lung cancer with elevated levels of bradykinin and substance P that could facilitate growth of lung cancer.

Certainly in any patient at risk for lung cancer, the benefits associated with taking an ACE inhibitor to reduce blood pressure and cardiac risk need to be weighed against risk for  lung cancer.

This view is echoed by one expert who expressed concern about the risks associated with ACE inhibitors.

“This high quality study shows that ACE inhibitors are a risk factor for lung cancer,” said Klaus Lessnau, M.D, a pulmonary and critical care specialist at Lenox Hill Hospital in New York City.

“The most important factor remains smoking, but implies that ACE inhibitors should be contraindicated in smokers and ex-smokers, armed with a study that reveals significant statistical association and biologic plausibility,” offered Lessnau.” “One wonders if they should be continued in nonsmokers,” he added.

As a result, this study is important to highlight based on the large number of patients currently taking long term ACE inhibitors and the inherent concern they may have for elevated cancer risk–and the potential need to change their medication–based on the results of this study.

Again, it’s important to emphasize that this is an observational study and the overall risk to patients is relatively low.  Patients should have a discussion with their health care provider regarding the risks and benefits of remaining on an ACE inhibitor. One option might be to switch to an ARB if there is ongoing concern, since there has been no elevated risk of lung cancer observed thus far with this class of antihypertensives .  ARBs may, in fact, reduce risk of lung cancer with a protective effect, based on recent studies.

In an accompanying editorial in BMJ, Dr. Deirdre Cronin-Fenton, Associate Professor, Department of Clinical Epidemiology, Aarhus University in Denmark places validity in the findings, but recommends the need for ongoing and further studies to validate the findings of this prospective observational cohort study.

In her editorial, Cronin-Fenton writes the study “highlights the value of registry data and a ‘big data’ approach to evaluating long term outcomes, which may be challenging to investigate in clinical trials. Although a 14% relative increase in lung cancer incidence might not translate to a large absolute risk, the findings are important given the considerable use of ACEIs worldwide.”

Cronin-Fenton continues:  “Nonetheless, in an individual patient, concerns about the long term risk of lung cancer should be balanced against gains in life expectancy associated with use of ACEIs. As [the authors] point out, further studies with long term follow-up are now needed to enhance the scientific evidence on the long term safety of these drugs.”

ACE inhibitors certainly have been beneficial in controlling blood pressure in the clinical setting. While this study highlights a biochemical mechanism that does exist, the data still is observational in nature, and will require more in-depth study to definitively make a determination regarding the decision to discontinue and replacing it in favor of a new class of medications for managing blood pressure

Filed under: General Problems | Leave a Comment »

US Revives its Harmful Drug War

Attorney General Sessions to Crack Down on Marijuana

https://www.hrw.org/news/2018/01/04/us-revives-its-harmful-drug-war

US Attorney General Jeff Sessions is reviving the US government’s out-of-date, ineffective, and counterproductive war on drugs. Today it was reported that he will rescind the 2013 Cole Memo, which allowed federal prosecutors to choose not to prosecute marijuana offenses in the states that allow adults to consume it.

Expand

Earlier this week, California became the sixth US state to allow recreational use of marijuana for adults. Sessions’ latest action shows that the attorney general wants federal prosecutors to have much less leeway in deciding whether to enforce federal marijuana laws in states like California. At a moment when preliminary US Centers for Disease Control data suggests that 146 people are dying every day in the United States from opioid overdoses, it is difficult to understand why the White House is focusing such energy on marijuana policy. President Donald Trump has yet to nominate directors for either the Drug Enforcement Administration or the Office of National Drug Control Policy.

Sessions’ combined actions will fuel arrests and mass incarceration in states and at the federal level. Every 25 seconds, someone in the United States is arrested for merely possessing drugs.

One in nine arrests at the state level is for drug possession – 1.25 million arrests every year – and they all cycle through the criminal justice system. Human Rights Watch has documented that this massive effort has had negligible impact on drug availability, and has even worsened the harms of drug trafficking and drug dependence. Even though African Americans and whites use drugs at the same rates, African Americans are disproportionately targeted, arrested, and incarcerated for drug offenses. Those incarcerated for drug offenses typically do not have access to drug treatment and can carry a scarlet letter for years, which impedes successful reentry into society by limiting housing and employment options.

Make no mistake, the war on drugs is again underway. It’s now up to Congress to check the Justice Department’s misguided policies by passing legislation to decriminalize possession for personal use of marijuana and other drugs.

Filed under: General Problems | 1 Comment »

The scenario use to go like this…  the patient goes to a physician’s office … the physician exams the pt and if appropriate … writes one or more prescriptions to treat the pt’s acute or chronic disease issues.  The pt went to the pharmacy of their choice to get the medication(s) that their physician determined would treat/manage/resolve their health issues.

The Pharmacist would check the new medication(s) against pt’s current list of medications for other drug interaction(s) , pt potential for known potentially allergies and the new medications, would also verify that the dose for the new medication(s) is within FDA guidelines..

If anything shows up as a potential problem… the pharmacist would reach out to the prescriber to share his/her concerns and – if necessary – make any changes the prescriber may wish to the prescribed medications so that the pt leaves the pharmacy with the appropriate medications to treat their health issues.

In some instances, the prescriber may state  “dispense as I wrote them”, the pharmacist would make notes on the prescription about their concern(s) and dispense the medication(s) to the pt.

In very rare incidents, the Pharmacist will flat out refuse to fill the prescriptions because the problems are TOO GREAT to do otherwise. In my nearly 50 yrs as a licensed Pharmacists I cannot remember any incidents that I flat out refused to fill a prescription..  unless it was forged, altered or got a ” bad PMP report”  Everything a Pharmacist does is based on FACTS !

With 4 + billion prescriptions filled each year in our country… there are going to be some misfills (mistakes)… so the pt walks away without the medication that the prescriber intended for them to have for their health issues.

Within the last 5-10 yrs, many Pharmacists have been told or adopted the authority to refuse to fill a particular prescription for “ANY REASON”. For many years, they were telling pts that “they were not comfortable”… apparently “uncomfortable” has now become a FACT as a reason not to fill a prescription. Over the last few years, Pharmacists apparently have realized that “uncomfortable” was indeed NOT A FACT …so the common reason for refusal to fill is “OUT OF STOCK”.. that is either a FACT or a LIE !

But like the misfill … the pt leaves the pharmacy without the medication that the pt’s prescriber wanted them to be on to treat their health issues.

A misfill is typically a accident whereas a denial of care is INTENTIONAL…  should there be legal consequences for both ?

US Drug Watchdog Now Urges Consumers Who Were Given the Wrong Prescription or Someone Else’s Prescription at a Local Pharmacy to Call About Possible Financial Rewards – Did You Keep the Pills?

https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/us-drug-watchdog-now-urges-consumers-who-were-given-the-wrong-prescription-or-someone-elses-prescription-at-a-local-pharmacy-to-call-about-possible-financial-rewards—did-you-keep-the-pills-300740090.html

WASHINGTON, Oct. 30, 2018 /PRNewswire/ — The US Drug Watchdog says, “We are appealing to individuals who was given a totally wrong prescription or another person’s prescription medication by a local pharmacy to call us anytime at 866-714-6466. If a person receives the wrong medical prescription, a prescription with an incorrect dosage, or someone else’s prescription—the medical complications could be extremely serious, or the side effects could be lethal.

“If you were given a completely incorrect medication or someone else’s prescription did you keep the medication, or keep the sales receipt that indicates the error? We would like to help you get compensated if you received the wrong medication at a local pharmacy and you were harmed because of it. However, to make compensation possible we will need proof of the mistake.

“Our effort also includes identifying a parent in any state who was given a prescription for someone else rather than their child or their child’s prescription was not the correct medication, or the dosage was not correct.” http://USDrugWatchdog.Com

The US Drug Watchdog’s Pharmacy Errors initiative is nationwide and is focused on identifying consumers in any state who were injured because a local pharmacy gave them the prescription for someone else – or filled a prescription with the wrong medication.  The group is now urging consumer in all states such as California, New York, Illinois, Florida, Texas,  Ohio, New Jersey, Nebraska, Louisiana, Nevada, Minnesota, Georgia, Tennessee, Washington, Alaska, Missouri, Pennsylvania or any other state to carefully look at the prescription they are picking up at a pharmacy to ensure it really is what their physician had prescribed. 

For more information, victims of pharmacy medication errors can call the US Drug Watchdog anytime at 866-714-6466. http://USDrugWatchdog.Com

The US Drug Watchdog is warning possible severe health side effects of a pharmacy medication errors include:

• Death (example a consumer with a severe heart condition is mistakenly given antibiotics. Some antibiotics can cause arrhythmia with a person with serious heart issues.)
• Hospitalization (example a pharmacist mistakenly gives a pregnant woman an epilepsy drug, the anticoagulant, or a drug to treat bipolar disorder). These types of drugs have all been linked to severe birth defects.
• Allergic reactions or a person having a severe reaction that could cause hospitalization.
• In most instances pharmacy prescription errors are caused by, labeling errors, mix-ups with another patient’s order, dispensing the wrong drug or wrong dosage, incompatible health conditions or adverse interactions with other medications.

The US Drug Watchdog says, “If you possess proof your pharmacy gave you the wrong prescription or someone else’s prescription, please call us anytime at 866-714-6466 – especially if you were injured by the mistake. We want to make certain you get compensated. However, as mentioned we will need proof of the mistake either being you still are in possession of the incorrect prescription, or your sales receipt indicates the error.” http://USDrugWatchdog.Com

Media Contact:

Thomas Martin

800-714-0303

SOURCE US Drug Watchdog

Related Links

http://USDrugWatchdog.Com

Filed under: General Problems | 1 Comment »

Tonight on
The Doctor’s Corner w/ hosts
Dr. Kline & Jonelle Elgaway
8pm est

Topic:
mme’s “morphine milligram equivalent”
and Titration

Call into the studio line (415) 915-2291.
You can listen to tonight’s program on our website:
www.cawnation.com
Click “Listen”
Or
YouTube Channel “The Doctor’s Corner”
Direct link is:
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCQk7ewfPvTfo3pleSzvth7A

Filed under: General Problems | 1 Comment »

Investors are more interested in their ability to make a profit than the potential of chronic pain pts being denied appropriate therapy.  Notice that they are using the 49,000 opiate deaths – of which the majority  – and growing – are from illegal opiates from Mexico and China.

This article suggests that the major chain pharmacies are going to get the same message from these investors activists Investors for Opioid Accountability

Also note that they reference ALLEGATIONS by the DEA against Rite Aid dispensing controlled substances with using a medical practitioner’s incorrect or invalid DEA registration number. It appears that this was an ADMINISTRATIVE ISSUE – a BOOKKEEPING ERROR- … of submitting a INCORRECT or INVALID DEA number of the prescriber… not that the prescriber did not have the legal authority to prescriber controlled substances.  This could easily happen in entering a new prescriber to the computer’s database, causing all prescriptions submitted going forward to have the incorrect number until the error was discovered.  It is not typical for the Rx dept staff to check and recheck a prescriber’s DEA number in the computer system each time a new or refill prescription is handled.  This appears to be just another “money grab” by the DEA… if they have illegally dispensed controlled substances the fine would have been in the multi-million area.

If these investor groups are more concerned about their profits from the stocks they own in these and other pharmacy chains and/or companies that have prescription depts as part of their operation. They are apparently using claimed opiate deaths using both legal & illegal opiates… so they are not apparently looking for the “real numbers” they only “real numbers that they are interested in  is those that shows up on their balance sheet.

Click here to use a website that will help you find a INDEPENDENT PHARMACY by zip code. The typical independent pharmacy where you will be dealing with the Pharmacist/Owner and the how you are treated is typically the difference if like night and day .. if you have been patronizing a chain store.  We had our own independent pharmacy for 20 yrs..  I am very familiar with the mindset.

Is it time to show all those outside interests that are trying to adversely impact your chronic pain therapy ? Move all your prescriptions to a INDEPENDENT PHARMACY and show them just how important your patronage of these chains stores is to the company’s stock price and bottom line

Amid mounting lawsuits alleging inadequate oversight of opioid dispensing, investors back calls for a board risk assessment at Rite Aid annual meeting

https://www.iccr.org/amid-mounting-lawsuits-alleging-inadequate-oversight-opioid-dispensing-investors-back-calls-board

Filed under: General Problems | 3 Comments »

Survey: 100 Chronic Pain Patients Needed

www.nationalpainreport.com/survey-100-chronic-pain-patients-needed-8837619.html

When over 100 California thought-leaders and luminaries in pain management (physicians, payers, administrators, policy makers, etc.) gather in Los Angeles November 2nd to develop a California Pain Strategy, they need some guidance.

That’s why they are asking the National Pain Report readers to help shape the discussion.

The group seeks to localize key recommendations from the National Institutes of Health’s National Pain Strategy in the Golden State. Then they hope that this strategy cannot only be implemented in California, but it will be a guide for other states.

To do that, they must understand what the chronic pain community thinks the big issues are.

To do that, they are asking for our readers to complete a short survey.

Please do that here.

Also, understand that if you try to fill out the survey and it won’t let you, it means we have reached the 100 persons limit the California leaders have asked.

If you want to add your opinion in the commentary section, please do. We are interested in your comment always, but especially on the topic of what a real comprehensive pain strategy should look like.

It’s easy to say, we need more access to pain medication—and many of you will (understandably).

But what else should be done around the issues of more physician training, patient and physician education, insurance coverage, alternative treatments and technologies or other issues that matter to you.

We really want to know.

The National Pain Strategy was adopted a couple of years ago, but its implementation has been, quite frankly, very slow in coming.

Many chronic pain physicians, advocates and patients believe the National Pain Strategy is the right recipe for dealing with chronic pain and that efforts to implement it, even at the state level, make good sense for the chronic pain patients and their loved ones.

The idea in California is that the nation’s largest state might be an example for other states and the federal government to follow.

That’s what Friday’s session in Los Angeles is designed to start—or resume:

A real conversation about chronic pain.

Filed under: General Problems | 2 Comments »