Iowa Psychiatrist Russell England Fined for Carelessly Prescribing Pills to Himself, Others

A Fairfield Iowa psychiatrist Russell England has been fined $5,000 for carelessly prescribing addictive pills to patients, while also improperly prescribed sedatives for himself and sleeping pills to members of his immediate family. 

 

England prescribed excessive amounts of opioid painkillers and benzodiazepine sedatives to multiple patients. Some of those patients had histories of drug or alcohol abuse, according to documents released this week by the Iowa Board of Medicine. England failed to show he took proper precautions, including discussing risks with patients and failed to use a statewide registry to see if patients had already received similar prescriptions from other health care providers. 

 

England agreed to pay a $5,000 fine, to refrain from treating chronic pain and to serve three years of professional probation.  

 

State medical regulators have sharpened their scrutiny of certain prescriptions (painkillers such as Vicodin, and sedatives such as Xanax) amid a national wave of addiction and overdoses. The board also is encouraging physicians to follow national guidelines for safe prescriptions.

 

Tony Leys, "Iowa psychiatrist fined for carelessly prescribing pills to himself, others," Des Moines Register, 14 June 2018, https://www.desmoinesregister.com/story/news/health/2018/06/14/iowa-psychiatrist-prescriptions-opioids-sedatives-russell-england/701833002/