With the most recent addition of Amanda LaFrance arrested in Florida for steering patients to treatment centers in return for cash kickbacks, Florida is far and away the epicenter of this illegal activity.
Amanda, who is 25, was caught in a government sting intended at chipping away at this unethical practice is notable for her young age, but not for the size of her crime. Her alleged transgression of receiving $6,750 pales in comparison to the types of figures that ringleader James Kigar was moving around (the main operator of Whole Life Recovery, which is the drug rehab at the center of the controversy).
Many Ask, “What is the Big Deal About a Referral Fee?”
The practice of brokering patients is, in short, getting financial payment for referring patients to a specific treatment center. If this does not sound like much of a crime to you, then you are not alone. The practice of paying “kickbacks” for treatment referrals might seem logical, but there are strict regulations surrounding referring patients to get medical care. The law is intended to keep referrals going to destinations that have the patient’s best interest in mind, not the finances of the person doing the referring.
“Addicts Helping Addicts”
The saying goes in the 12-step Meetings of Alcoholics Anonymous that it is made up of “addicts helping addicts.” It would seem to be a grave violation of this ethos to sell someone’s treatment to the highest bidder rather than truly recommend what might help them. What makes Amanda LaFrance’s crime a little more tragic and unexpected was that she was in fact merely three years removed from entering treatment for her own addiction. Amanda then subsequently had a child with fellow recovering addict Deon Hill. In the interim they have both relapsed and Deon Hill has been charged with armed robbery.
The arrests have netted many in the Palm Beach area but there are similar charge being prepared in the Southern California area and no doubt many other hotbeds of addiction treatment centers.
Canada has been recently inundated with Fentanyl, which is an incredibly potent opiate painkiller that is very popular with those addicted to narcotics.
The term “Spice” is drug slang for a class of herbal concoctions that have gained a reputation as a safe and way to get high. Sold as incense or potpourri in convenience stores, head shops and over the Internet, Spice consists of a mixture of dried plant leaves and stems that have been soaked in synthetic chemicals. When smoked, Spice produces psychoactive (mind-altering) effects that have been compared by some to marijuana.
Hydrocodone, a narcotic painkiller that is an ingredient in Vicodin, has been responsible for more deaths since 2006 than any other prescription medication. In an effort to stem the growing tide of Vicodin-related deaths, a federal panel has recommended that the FDA reclassify the drug as a Schedule II narcotic. This would place it in the same category as prescription drugs like OxyContin and fentanyl and illegal drugs like cocaine and methamphetamine. All of these drugs that have a high potential for abuse and addiction.
People who describe themselves as “spiritual” but who aren’t members of an organized religion are more likely to suffer from a variety of mental problems, including eating disorders, drug abuse, depression, anxiety and phobias. This was the finding of a recent study conducted by researchers at University College London.
Years of substance abuse appear to have led to the death of former world champion boxer Hector Camacho in a drug-related drive by shooting. In November of 2012, former world champion boxer Hector ‘Macho’ Camacho, died tragically after he was shot in the head while sitting in a parked car. According to the New York Times, several bags of
Prolonged use of marijuana by our nation’s students and the drug’s harmful effects were the focus of this year’s “Monitoring the Future” survey. This annual survey of students from the eighth, tenth and twelfth grades recently completed by researchers from the University of Michigan. The data was obtained from classrooms throughout the country earlier in the year and was licensed through a grant from the National Institute on Drug Abuse.
The majority of prescription medications in America are taken safely and properly by the intended recipient, but the growing trend of prescription drug abuse among teenagers and young adults can make many of these medications dangerous and even lethal.