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Feds: McMurray physician illegally distributed narcotics
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A McMurray-based physician was charged today with unlawful distribution of the prescription narcotics oxycodone and oxymorphone.
Oliver W. Herndon was charged in U.S. District Court through a criminal complaint. He was arrested and then released on $50,000 bond.
An affidavit filed in the complaint said that he has often prescribed 30-milligram tablets of oxycodone from his old office on Lewis Run Road in West Mifflin, then moved his office to Waterdam Plaza in McMurray last month.
The affidavit said that Gateway Rehabilitation Center in recent months saw a surge in patients addicted to Opana, a brand of oxymorphone.
The Drug Enforcement Administration traced the surge to Dr. Herndon's office, and checked his prescription history at 128 pharmacies. They found that 87 of the pharmacies were refusing to fill prescriptions written by Dr. Herndon, and 26 had contacted the DEA with concerns about his practices.
A succession of agents then visited his office, according to the affidavit, and were able to quickly obtain prescriptions for the narcotics, sometimes within minutes and without undergoing physical examinations.
No one answered Dr. Herndon's office phone Friday.
First Published March 9, 2012 6:10 pm
