And now:[EMAIL PROTECTED] writes:
Date: Sun, 07 Nov 1999 12:47:50 -0500
To: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
From: Lynne Moss-Sharman <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Subject: $26 million drug bill Alberta
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In 1998 alone, 80,000 Alberta natives were issued $26 million worth of
prescription drugs. Taxpayers foot the bill in keeping with Canada's
aboriginal treaty obligations. [note: how much of this $26 million went to
wrongly prescribed psychiatric drugging of people??]
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
SADDLE LAKE $400,000 BOGUS PRESCRIPTIONS ON RESERVE
Saturday, November 6, 1999
Fraudulent pharmacist 'a wake-up call' Health Canada bilked
By BERNARD PILON, EDMONTON SUN
Health Canada has tightened up anti-fraud controls after admitting a Saddle
Lake pharmacist didn't trigger internal alarms when bilking Ottawa of
$400,000 in fake prescriptions. A day after retired druggist Barrie Green,
60, got slapped with nine months in jail and a $60,000 fine for writing up
thousands of non-existent drug claims, fraud-catcher Herman Wierenga says
Green knew how to skirt detection. "His approach escaped notice for some
time. It's something we have to acknowledge," the Alberta assistant
regional manager of Health Canada's medical services branch said yesterday.
"We now have better tools and are exploring ways to beef up that
audit regime."
Green, now retired to Victoria, admitted in St. Paul provincial court
Thursday he ripped off $396,490 from Health Canada's native drug plan
between 1993 and 1996 by making up bills for refills
supposedly issued to St. Paul-area natives. The bogus payouts - since
returned to federal coffers - came to light only after the druggist who'd
bought Green's tiny drugstore in the Saddle Lake health centre in 1997
found actual refills were half of what Green had claimed they'd be. That
unnamed pharmacist alerted Wierenga's office, which in turn alerted RCMP
commercial crime investigators.
"He was a wake-up call for the types of tools we use for audits.
There are formulas, but he got around them. We have to become
more sophisticated in our audits," Wierenga said.
In 1998 alone, 80,000 Alberta natives were issued $26 million worth of
prescription drugs. Taxpayers foot the bill in keeping with Canada's
aboriginal treaty obligations.
Wierenga said Green's fraud tricks triggered new checks and
balances that are "well beyond" industry standards. "We do a
profile of extraordinary cases so we can look for similar red flags
elsewhere." RCMP Sgt. Kim Turner said commercial crime cops spent a year
probing Green's bogus claims, adding the case was a first for
Alberta Mounties. Meanwhile, the governing body for Alberta's 2,800
pharmacists has started its own probe of Green. Alberta Pharmaceutical
Association registrar Greg Eberhard said court transcripts will be studied
to see if a professional misconduct hearing is warranted. Such a hearing
could result in Green being barred from ever practising as a pharmacist
again. Said Eberhard: "When I hear court has made a decision for jail time
and a fine ... I would suggest, yes, we have a serious matter to deal with."
"Let Us Consider The Human Brain As
A Very Complex Photographic Plate"
1957 G.H. Estabrooks
www.angelfire.com/mn/mcap/bc.html
FOR K A R E N #01182
who died fighting 4/23/99
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
www.aches-mc.org
807-622-5407
For people like me, violence is the minotaur; we spend our lives
wandering its maze, looking for the exit. (Richard Rhodes)
Never befriend the oppressed
unless you are prepared to
take on the oppressor.
(Author unknown)
