Jerrold Rosenberg, MD, 62, a board-certified physiatrist in North Providence, RI is another physician who has been charged with a crime where there is no crime. Physiatry, or physical medicine and rehabilitation is a specialized branch of medicine treating pain from injury, illness or disablity.
Dr. Rosenberg had a 19-count indictment in Feb, 2017 for health care fraud and taking kickbacks for prescribing Subsys, a quick-acting form of fentanyl that’s sprayed under the tongue. It begins working in as little as five minutes, which is useful for patients who experience sharp quick bursts of breakthrough pain. It has FDA approval for use with cancer pain. But records show that only 1 percent of prescriptions for the product are written by cancer specialists. So the standard practice of using what is best for the patient, and off-label prescribing is still active and should not be labeled as criminal. There are many reasons why a doctor would choose Subsys for breakthrough pain, one of which could be to help cut down on drug diversion.
The government is trying to create a crime here for off-label prescribing which is done all the time and is not a crime. It costs millions of dollars to get a drug approved by the FDA. Usually a drug is tested for one problem. But once it is approved, doctors often prescribe it more broadly. Neurontin, for example, was approved for seizures. But it is now used for multiple purposes, including pain, which have not been put through the FDA approval process. Subsys was approved for breakthrough cancer pain, but pain is pain. You can’t start charging one off-label use as a crime simply because it’s an easy kill in the court.
Jerrold Rosenberg is accused of falsifying documentation to insurance companies, claiming patients had cancer when the cancer was supposedly gone. Now anyone who believes that cancer is cured with conventional treatments such as chemo and radiation is a fool. Cancer can be beaten down for a while, but it WILL return–because the treatment does not address the cause, and usually actually increases the body’s proneness to develop cancer. Besides, once a patient has a diagnosis of cancer, it is reasonable for any doctor to use that diagnosis on the record. Dr. Rosenberg’s using that diagnosis for insurance payment should not be considered fraud or criminal. The seriousness of the patient’s condition (and cancer can return at any time) is a point that is allowed to be considered when determining the level of the visit. And whether cancer is currently present or not has nothing to do on any resulting pain from the condition.
Now another attempt by the government to create crime where there is none is in the charges of kickbacks. Dr. Rosenberg is charged with receiving $180,000 in speaking fees from June 2012 to July 2015 for the company Insys, producer of Subsys. The government is trying to make that fraud. First, they state that Rosenberg is described in the indictment as “far and away the biggest prescriber of the fentanyl spray in Rhode Island.” Then they allege that the payment for speaking was a kickback for prescribing the drug. The government is playing on the ignorance of the standard juror. Being chosen to be a speaker for a drug company occurs AFTER the doctor has shown that they have reasons for prescribing the drug. I was chosen to be a speaker for Kadian, an extended release opioid, but only because I appreciated its abuse deterrence and I prescribed it frequently enough for them to take notice, ask me why I liked Kadian, and offer me a speaker’s bureau position. Drug companies don’t go to doctors and say “We’ll pay you to prescribe our drug.” But they do need experienced doctors to go out and explain to other doctors how to use a new drug. This is standard practice, and is not a crime.
In my opinion, this attack on Dr. Rosenberg is simply government targeting of an older doctor to achieve forfeiture and reimbursement of all of his government insurance claims. This is standard MO for the DOJ, and now states are modeling their practices after it. I hope that the people of Rhode Island learn the truth that these “charges” are not criminal, but common medical practice, and that the stigma of opiophobia is driving these crime creations by the government since the jury would convict based simply on propaganda.
Charles A. Tamuleviz, representing Rosenberg, said that “Dr. Rosenberg believes now, and he believed at the time (that)–he exercised appropriate care and treatment for his patients at all times.”
Addendum Sept, 2021:
Four months after this post, in October, 2017, Dr. Rosenberg pleaded guilty. He was sentenced to 51 months in prison, but that time is now up and he is either on home confinement or at a halfway house. Dr. Rosenberg, you can work toward the exoneration of all of us innocent practitioners ruined by our rogue government. Join us as an ambassador below, and help with getting the word out.
Anyone in communication with him, please tell him to work on forgiveness and when he is ready, join us in the effort to restore humanity to the nation.
Addendum from the author:
I have failed in my mission to end these attacks on doctors and pain patients. Through John Bevere’s book The Bait of Satan, I have figured out why—my lack of forgiveness to those who attacked me. As in Mark 11: 24-26:
“Therefore I say to you, whatever things you ask when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you will have them. And whenever you stand praying, if you have anything against anyone, forgive him, that your Father in heaven may also forgive you your trespasses. But if you do not forgive, neither will your Father in heaven forgive your trespasses.”
And when you do not do the will of the Father, you are estranged from him and he will ignore you. So we all must forgive the agents who attacked us in order for things to be made right through any of our works.
Jesus said
“Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one’s life for his friends.”
But we cannot lay down our lives for God unless we know Him well enough to trust Him. We must have the assurance that He would never do anything to harm us. He always looks out for what He knows is in our best interest. As a nation, those of us suffering from these attacks must understand that we are serving as God’s messengers of love. We must forgive those who persecute us and love them instead, following God’s will for us. Then and only then will we see fruits from our labor.
So I hope that everyone who has suffered from what happened to the doctor can trust the Lord, forgive those who have hurt you, and help bring this country back to the God-fearing country that our forefathers founded. Then, and only then, can you be a part of the effort to stop these attacks. I look forward to that day.
Linda Cheek is a teacher and disenfranchised medical doctor, turned activist, author, and speaker. A victim of prosecutorial misconduct and outright law-breaking of the government agencies DEA, DHHS, and DOJ, she hopes to be a part of exonerating all doctors illegally attacked through the Controlled Substance Act. She holds the key to success, as she can offset the government propaganda that drugs cause addiction with the truth: The REAL Cause of Drug Abuse.
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I saw Dr Rosenberg for a few years for pain management. I have spinal stenosis and other complications from aging. I really wish he’d return and open a practice again. They treat you like scum as an aged senior needing meds. If you can get pain meds at all.
To whom it may concern,
Other than Dr. Rosenberg’s family, I am the only one who can testify to Dr. Roseberg’s devotion to patient care and his brilliant education.
In 1972, I met Dr. Rosenberg. At that time, he was enrolled in a Private School. He was accepted at Brandeis University (pre-med). Then he was accepted at George Washington University for medicine. Dr. Rosenberg was always studying and ahead of his time.
In fact, in 1972, at a dinner party, a prominent WWII, purple heart, Seabees veteran took me aside and said your friend is brilliant. His family sacrificed a lot for his education and his grandparents were survivors of the Holocaust. It is a travesty that the medical profession could not foresee Dr. Rosenberg’s commitment and foresight to treat patients. Like Sister Elizabeth Kenney (Founder of Courage Kenney Rehabilitation Institute, Golden Valley, Minnesota) and provided rehabilitation to polio victims, Dr. Rosenberg tried to help his patients deal with debilitating illness.
In 2010, I contacted Dr. Rosenberg to ask advice on my late Mother’s torn rotator cuff. Dr. Rosenberg provided exercises, but NEVER prescribed or provided information for controlled pain killers.
I am saddened and I am sure his late grandparents (survivors of the Holocaust) and his parents would be so disappointed that the medical system singled out a diligent, progressive Doctor to create a scapegoat. In fact, my late Mother’s Doctor misdiagnosed severe pain in her stomach, stating it was radiating pain from the sciatica, when it was actually Stage 4 Pancreatic Cancer. Why doesn’t the Meical Profession reprimand this Doctor who practices at Intermed in Portland Maine? He deserves it. He cheated my family of precious time with our late Mother and reprimanded me for hiring a Dana Farber Palliative Oncologist from consulting with my late Mother’s Palliative Oncologist. My late Mother said ignore him. I did and the Dana Farber Oncologist provide brilliant insights to ease the pain of Pancreatic Cancer.
I was honored to know Dr. Jerrold Rosenberg and his family, and whoever filed this complaint against Dr. Rosenberg does not have enough progressive knowledge to understand his devotion to his patients. I wish Dr. Rosenberg the best and I believe Dr. Rosenberg is a loss to the medical profession.
Respectfully,
Regina-Marie Gross
Now the DEA is converting everything to heroin.they tried to convert methadone and oxycodone to heroin. I have no idea how the come to this conclusion and who is advising them.they tried in my case and did not succeed.
That is probably because they really can’t convert to marijuana anymore since it is becoming legal in many states. There has always been a conversion table for charges, based on the equivalent dose of MJ.
For Dr. Rosenberg’s attorneys, check out Family Practice News of August, 2016–the article “Adult cancer survivors deserve screening for chronic pain.” This shows a study of 35 meta-analyses, 9 randomized controlled trials, and 19 comparative studies that shows that 40% of cancer survivors have chronic pain related to their malignancy. This blows the government argument out of the water!!
I believe that he thought that he was doing a good thing despite the outcome
Dr.Cheek,,I can’t seem to find your email,,,I have a question for you,,,,Do u know,,,when the dea tries to concivst these innocent doctors,,,,does the words ,,”chemically similar ”,’in the describtion of controlled substance get used to convict our doctors in a court of law?? Also,,do u know,,does a class 2 controlledsubstance carry a larger penalty then a class 3,,in conficted???Also,,u know I used your list of convicted doctords,,did u know,,there is like 1 doctor convicted ion the state of N.D. and that’s it,,,,verses,,,,thee east coast,,w/1000’s of doctors unlawfully convicted….thank u for your time in answering,,,,,,,mary
Hi Mary,
My email is [email protected]. No, the word “chemically similar” is not used to my knowledge. Yes, class 2 does carry a heavier penalty than class 3. But in general, all drugs are categorized as “oxycodone” on record, even if they are schedule 3-5. They are simply converted in weight. So, for example, I was charged with 162 charges of oxycodone distribution when none of them were actually oxycodone. They were Lortab, Xanax or valium (which Dr. Schultz actually prescribed, I didn’t, because I didn’t prescribe anxiolytics with opioids). The reason for the conversion is because the law is actually written using marijuana as the weight determinant for charges. All drugs are measured by a scale compared to marijuana. That is because the law was designed to go after the Columbian drug cartels, not doctors at home. I personally think they chose oxycodone to be the drug on the charges because of the stigma associated with OxyContin years back. So when a person hears “oxycodone distribution” they immediately think the person is a street pusher.
Yes, certain areas of the country are taking this and running with it. New Jersey is a start. Eastern New York and Eastern Pennsylvania have also targeted more doctors than could possibly be actual criminals. It will continue to grow until people learn that drugs don’t cause abuse, and in actuality the lack of appropriate pain management is causing more people to reach addict status because of the stress in their lives.
Linda,
Have you notified The Judicial Watch? The verdict is the paper they put out that states…Noone is above the law? I am anxious to meet the advisory board team in person. What is the team plan to offer help to all convicted wrongly? Any updates? How to get a team together for group defense? Paulette
No, Paulette, I’m not familiar with The Judicial Watch. I’ll look into it.