State AG Says Long Island Doctor Prescribed Oxycodone Like Candy
BALDWIN, N.Y. (CBSNewYork) -- A Long Island doctor accused of selling prescriptions for highly addictive painkillers to patients without performing examinations has pleaded not guilty.
Dr. Anand Persaud, 44, entered a plea of not guilty at his arraignment Tuesday afternoon, 1010 WINS' Mona Rivera reported. He has been remanded without bail and his case will be back in court August 1.
Earlier Tuesday, Persaud said nothing as he was led out of his Baldwin office in handcuffs in front of stunned patients, Rivera reported.
State Attorney General Eric Schneiderman said Persaud would prescribe oxycodone like candy, WCBS 880's Sophia Hall reported.
L.I. Doctor Accused Of Selling Painkiller Prescriptions
"We know he was giving out hundreds of prescriptions," Schneiderman said. "We certainly believe he was in the top five prescribers of painkillers in the State of New York."
Schneiderman said Persaud operated a "two-tiered practice."
"He had some real patients, most of his money was coming from the second track which were patients that would come in and he'd write them a prescription for cash," Schneiderman said. "We have established that he would give out prescriptions without any examination at all."
Patients at Persaud's family medical practice specializing in infectious diseases were shocked by the allegations.
"I have chronic Lyme disease that I was turned away from many other doctors," one patient said. "He is a very good man."
"He even made house calls and never took a dime to help me," another patient said.
Persaud is the latest doctor to be arrested in a number of probes that were launched following the Medford pharmacy massacre in June 2011.
L.I. Doctor Accused Of Selling Painkiller Prescriptions
"It's unconscionable that a doctor, a trusted licensed professional, would violate his professional duties and abuse his license to traffic in prescriptions for narcotics," said Schneiderman. "My office will hold accountable those who contribute to the growth of the prescription drug abuse epidemic in New York State."
Persaud faces two counts of criminal sale of a prescription for a controlled substance. He faces up to 15 years in prison if convicted.
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