People taking ADHD medications, or attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder, may encounter difficulties receiving therapy following the arrests of two executives of a telehealth company that provided such drugs to adults across the United States.
On Thursday, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention issued an official health advice warning about “potentially disrupted access to care among individuals taking prescription stimulant medications and possible increased risks for injury and overdose.”
Around the same time, the US Department of Justice issued a federal health-care fraud charge against two executives from Done Global, a digital health startup that advertises itself on its website as “making high quality psychiatric chronic care management more accessible and affordable for patients.”
The impact of the indictment on patients “is unknown at the time,” according to the CDC’s advice.
“Patients who rely on prescription stimulant medications to treat their ADHD and have been using this or other similar subscription-based telehealth platforms could experience a disruption to their treatment and disrupted access to care,” the warning stated. “A disruption involving this large telehealth company could impact as many as 30,000 to 50,000 patients ages 18 years and older across all 50 U.S. states.”
Ruthia He, the founder and CEO of Done Global Inc., was detained in Los Angeles on Thursday and accused with conspiring to distribute Adderall over the internet, committing health-care fraud, and obstructing justice, according to a Justice Department announcement. David Brody, the company’s clinical president, has also been detained in San Rafael, California.
According to the Justice Department, He and Brody made more than $100 million by arranging for the prescriptions of over 40 million pills, targeting “drug seekers” and encouraging prescribers to administer stimulants to patients who did not qualify.
“As alleged, these defendants exploited the COVID-19 pandemic to develop and carry out a $100 million scheme to defraud taxpayers and provide easy access to Adderall and other stimulants for no legitimate medical purpose,” Attorney General Merrick Garland stated in a press statement. “Those seeking to profit from addiction by illegally distributing controlled substances over the internet should know that they cannot hide their crimes and that the Justice Department will hold them accountable.”
Brody’s attorney, Naomi Chung, said he had pled not guilty on all counts. “Dr. Brody worked to promote access to medical treatment for those with ADHD in the face of both widespread stigma and the unprecedented challenges of a global pandemic.”
Attempts to reach He or the corporation were unsuccessful, and CNN was unable to determine whether He has hired a lawyer because the case docket is still sealed.
The charges are the Justice Department’s first criminal drug distribution prosecutions stemming from telemedicine prescriptions through a digital health company, according to the agency. If convicted, he and Brody risk a maximum sentence of two decades in prison.
Last year, a CDC research discovered that prescriptions for stimulants often used to treat attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder increased during the epidemic, particularly among adults. Between 2016 and 2020, the percentage of the population that had filled a prescription for a stimulant medicine remained largely stable. However, prescription fills increased significantly in 2021, by more than 10% across most age groups.
The latest CDC alert stated that there is an ongoing prescription medicine shortage in the United States involving multiple stimulant prescriptions routinely used to treat ADHD, a brain disease that causes difficulty concentrating or controlling impulsive behavior. ADHD is estimated to affect approximately 4% of adults and 10% of children in the United States. Approximately one-third of children with ADHD continue to have the diagnosis throughout adulthood.
“Patients whose care or access to prescription stimulant medications is disrupted, and who seek medication outside of the regulated healthcare system, might significantly increase their risk of overdose due to the prevalence of counterfeit pills in the illegal drug market that could contain unexpected substances, including fentanyl,” according to an advisory from the CDC.
“Given the national drug overdose crisis and threats associated with the illegal drug market, individuals struggling to access prescription stimulant medications are urged to avoid using medication obtained from anyone other than a licensed clinician and licensed pharmacy,” the warning stated. “Health officials and healthcare providers may need to assist affected patients seeking treatment for ADHD and should communicate overdose risks associated with the current illegal drug market as well as provide overdose prevention education and mental health support.”
The CDC recommendation also cautioned that without treatment, ADHD is linked to social and emotional impairment, as well as an increased risk of drug or alcohol use disorder, unintentional injuries such as car accidents and suicide.
“As more health-care needs are met through telemedicine, we will not tolerate fraud schemes that seek to recklessly exploit digital technologies,” said Christi Grimm, inspector general of the US Department of Health and Human Services, according to the Justice Department announcement. “We will continue to work with our law enforcement partners to protect the enrollees of federal health care programs by ensuring that requirements for the appropriate, legal prescribing of stimulants and other drugs are always met, and those who choose to violate them are held accountable.”
