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Press Release

Local Pain Doctor Named In A 114 Count Indictment; Accused Of Illegally Issuing Hundreds Of Thousands Of Prescriptions For Controlled Substances

For Immediate Release
U.S. Attorney's Office, Western District of New York

CONTACT:      Barbara Burns
PHONE:         (716) 843-5817
FAX:            (716) 551-3051 

BUFFALO, N.Y.-U.S. Attorney William J. Hochul Jr. announced today that a federal grand jury has returned a 114 count indictment charging Dr. Eugene Gosy, 55, of Clarence, NY, with conspiracy to distribute controlled substances, unlawful distribution of narcotics, conspiracy to commit health care fraud, and health care fraud. The charges carry a maximum penalty of 20 years, a $1,000,000 fine or both.

“As alleged, this defendant took advantage of his medical license and the trust placed in him by patients, and created a highly sophisticated criminal enterprise responsible  for  the  mass  distribution  of  addictive  prescription  opioids,”  said  U.S. Attorney Hochul. “The defendant ignored the true needs of suffering individuals, falsified his participation in required medical training, directed unqualified staff to authorize prescriptions,  and  supplied  patients  with  dangerous  controlled  substances  contra- indicated by the patient’s condition.   By turning his patients into dependents, this defendant and his practice became a criminal conspiracy to convert real pain into the defendant’s own considerable profit.”

Drug Enforcement Administration Special Agent in Charge James J. Hunt stated, “Dr. Gosy’s medical clinic is the modern day version of 19th Century opium dens responsible for fueling opioid addiction, overdoses and death. Similar to blood money, it is alleged that Dr. Gosy prescribed millions of prescription pills for no legitimate medical purpose in exchange for profit. There is an irrefutable link between the abuse of pain medication and heroin abuse which has devastated families in Buffalo and throughout our nation. This investigation was a collaboration of ongoing law enforcement efforts in
 
battling drug traffickers of all kinds – those with stethoscopes and those with loads of glassines.”

“Gosy’s lack of concern for the health and well-being of his patients -- and their affected families and friends -- speaks volumes to his arrogance,” said FBI Special Agent in Charge Adam S. Cohen. “Doctors like Gosy should work to heal the sick, not increase their patients’ pain and suffering for their own greed and personal gain.”

Assistant U.S. Attorneys George C. Burgasser and Elizabeth R. Moellering, who are handling the case, stated that according to the indictment, between 2006 and the present, the defendant, a self-described pain management doctor, distributed controlled substances, such as fentanyl, oxycodone, morphine, and hydrocodone for reasons other than legitimate medical purposes. The defendant is accused specifically of illegally prescribing the controlled substances in return for payments from patients and insurance companies.

The indictment alleges that defendant attracted and thereafter maintained repeat visits by his patients by operating his pain management clinic in a variety of manners contrary to accepted medical practice. These methods included:

• issuing prescriptions for controlled substances to patients despite obvious indications that the patients were abusing and misusing the medications;
• falsifying  completion  of  training  requirements,  including  Continuing
Medical Education courses, Worker’s Compensation training and Infectious Disease  Control  training,  by  directing  office  staff  to  complete  online courses for him;
• signing blank prescriptions and directing and permitting others who were unqualified to fill out the remaining required information, such as name of
patient, drug, and dosage;
• creating  and  utilizing  a  telephonic  patient  prescription  renewal  process which allowed persons to obtain controlled substances prescriptions from
individuals not medically trained or certified to do so, and without adequate
medical review;
• prescribing a highly regulated controlled substance (buprenorphine) under the cover of pain management to circumvent federal regulations limiting
the number of patients that any given doctor may treat (100 patients).

 

In addition, between 2010 and December 2015, the defendant is accused of defrauding insurance companies who paid New York State Workers’ Compensation claims,  including  the  New  York  State  Insurance  Fund.  The  allegations  center  upon
 
occasions when Gosy traveled outside the Buffalo area but nevertheless submitted and purported to electronically sign claims for the treatment of patients provided by other staff members.

The indictment is the result of an investigation by the Drug Enforcement Administration, under the direction of James J. Hunt, Special Agent in Charge, New York Field Division, the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Western New York Health Care Task Force, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Adam S. Cohen, the Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Scott Lampert, the Army National Guard - New York National Guard Counterdrug Task Force, under the direction of Lt. Col. Nicholas Dean, the New York State Department of Financial Services, under the direction of Maria T. Vullo, Acting Superintendent, the New York State Office of the Workers’ Compensation Fraud Inspector General, under the direction of Inspector General Cathy Leahy Scott and the New York State Bureau of Narcotics Enforcement.

The fact that a defendant has been charged with a crime is merely an accusation and the defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.

Updated April 27, 2016