Wilmington, N.C.-based family medicine physician Mark Armitage, MD, agreed to pay $170,000 to resolve allegations he prescribed opioids and other drugs outside the usual course of professional practice.
From 2009 to 2018, Dr. Armitage wrote nearly 9,000 prescriptions for Schedule II controlled substances, according to a June 23 news release from the U.S. Justice Department.
For example, he allegedly wrote prescriptions for a combination of an opioid, benzodiazepine and muscle relaxer, a trio frequently sought by drug abusers, on 400 occasions over a two-year period.
Additionally, according to the report, Dr. Armitage allegedly continued to prescribe a mother of four opioids and controlled substances even after she exhibited numerous signs of abuse and acute narcotic withdrawal.
Dr. Armitage, who had previously surrendered his Drug Enforcement Administration registration to prescribe controlled substances, also agreed to not reapply for authorization to prescribe Schedule II controlled substances until April 30, 2024.