Doctor cut off roommate.

My roommate, who happens to be my ex wife, has been prescribed 3 mg of xanax for 25 years approx.  Last year, her doctor stopped taking medicare but failed to notify her so he agreed to see her.  Now all of a sudden they are back to not accepting medicare.  He cut her off  without warning.  3 mg a day and his response to our questions about that was "She will feel a little unwell for a few days BUT IT WILL NOT HURT HER."  My question is, should I take this to my states medical board?  Is it worth suing him over this?  I've managed to keep her out of withdrawal "I plead the fifth" on how.  This is exactly the kind of thing that is being cracked down on.  Not just opioids, but BZ's too.  I want the mans license.  Any advice?  Experiences?

If you can cope with the stress of it then I say go for it, he is totally negligent, if nothing else it will hopefully erase him of the belief that he sits on the right hand of god the father.

It's funny you should say that.  He's Mormon, and very faithful. 

We are both disabled, so we pretty much have all the time in the world.  I can weather it, she can weather it.  I just need to hope I can find a lawyer that will take it on contingency.  I actually don't really care about getting any money.  I would be happy with his license.  Sure, I'd love to own his house, but that's not my priority.  My  priority is  making sure he doesn't hurt anyone else.  I would like to hear others, but barring someone coming on here and giving me compelling reasons not to go this route, I think I'll compile a report for the board on Monday.  Anyone have any experience with this personally?  This is gross negligence isn't it?  I mean, how could it not be.  He either knows or should have known how dangerous this is...  I believe that's almost the letter of the law when it comes to negligence.  I'm so fuming mad right now.  Please move, if this is in the wrong forum.

It's funny you should say that.  He's Mormon, and very faithful. 

We are both disabled, so we pretty much have all the time in the world.  I can weather it, she can weather it.  I just need to hope I can find a lawyer that will take it on contingency.  I actually don't really care about getting any money.  I would be happy with his license.  Sure, I'd love to own his house, but that's not my priority.  My  priority is  making sure he doesn't hurt anyone else.  I would like to hear others, but barring someone coming on here and giving me compelling reasons not to go this route, I think I'll compile a report for the board on Monday.  Anyone have any experience with this personally?  This is gross negligence isn't it?  I mean, how could it not be.  He either knows or should have known how dangerous this is...  I believe that's almost the letter of the law when it comes to negligence.  I'm so fuming mad right now.  Please move, if this is in the wrong forum.

 

@ visions330 , yes its negligence & yes you can sue . You have to get another doctor to say it was negligence though . I am in a similar situation & i know personally what i am saying is true .

 

My Dr prescribed me 180 10-325 hydrocodone's with 120 2mg xanax bars along with 90 20mg paxils per month & just cut me off cold turkey on the xanax .. I shouldn't have prescribed any of this in the first place . But it turns out my Dr is  1 out of 10 highest prescribing and over prescribing doctors in the entire state of NV .. I wish you good luck .

 

 

Thank you for the reply.  I can get another doctor to say it was negligent.  Wait, do you mean I have to let her go into acute benzodiazepine withdrawal and take her to an ER?  Cause I don't know if I'm willing to do that.  However, a physician at that same ER once told me how irresponsible it was to prescribe me klonopin at 3mg a day for more than 2-4 weeks in the first place.  So I don't know.  Is it that hard to find a doctor that would side with us on this issue?

Oh yeah, I forgot to mention.  She has epilepsy too.

"An Introduction to Medical Malpractice in the United States"

 

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2628513/

 

"In the United States, the patient alleging medical malpractice must generally prove four elements or legal requirements to make out a successful claim of medical malpractice [6]. These elements include: (1) the existence of a legal duty on the part of the doctor to provide care or treatment to the patient; (2) a breach of this duty by a failure of the treating doctor to adhere to the standards of the profession; (3) a causal relationship between such breach of duty and injury to the patient; and (4) the existence of damages that flow from the injury such that the legal system can provide redress."

Thank you for the reply.  I can get another doctor to say it was negligent.  Wait, do you mean I have to let her go into acute benzodiazepine withdrawal and take her to an ER?  Cause I don't know if I'm willing to do that.  However, a physician at that same ER once told me how irresponsible it was to prescribe me klonopin at 3mg a day for more than 2-4 weeks in the first place.  So I don't know.  Is it that hard to find a doctor that would side with us on this issue?

 

No i wouldn't do the withdrawals or let it happen , i ended up in 10 different hospitals and two different mental heath wards & i am not a lawyer or in a position to give legal advice , the ER's all 10 of them gave me nothing for the benzo withdrawls & neither did the two mental wards , im telling you & anyone else i went through a complete HELL & ended up with criminal charges for hallucinating & being in a weird/mental state of mind  . confused and trying to get into a house thinking it was mine .

 

police don't care , doctors don't care .  i feel like i am just a throw away person

 

everything requires proof , if you CAN get another Dr to say how dangerous it is just to kick someone due to insurance reasons & not treat them  i personally believe it will help your case [ if you have one ]  not saying you don't . One thing i've learned about the FDA , the Us Government Doctors in general it's all about Money .

 

I wish you good luck 

If she has epilepsy get her to the hospital sooner rather than later, and call the medical board.  Even a few people without a history of seizures seized from stopping that dose cold turkey.

 

 

Thank you for all the replies. 

 

 

"An Introduction to Medical Malpractice in the United States"

 

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2628513/

 

"In the United States, the patient alleging medical malpractice must generally prove four elements or legal requirements to make out a successful claim of medical malpractice [6]. These elements include: (1) the existence of a legal duty on the part of the doctor to provide care or treatment to the patient; (2) a breach of this duty by a failure of the treating doctor to adhere to the standards of the profession; (3) a causal relationship between such breach of duty and injury to the patient; and (4) the existence of damages that flow from the injury such that the legal system can provide redress."

 

Thank you for the information.  My main goal, at least for now, is to contact and get her an appointment with a Dr. of Addiction Medicine.  I might have to go through a few, but I'm sure I can get one to agree.  The goal being to have his prescribing practices investigated.  It's a start, I think.

If she has epilepsy get her to the hospital sooner rather than later, and call the medical board.  Even a few people without a history of seizures seized from stopping that dose cold turkey.

 

Well, my main goal is her health, she has medicine for a coupe of days, but yes, I will take her to the hospital as soon as she needs to go, which I know is before withdrawal starts.

Naw man....that would do nothing but add more stress. Drs. are clueless. Continue to score valium for the wife so she can reasonably taper and forgive the muhFucka. Revenge and benzo wd dont go together well. Good luck!

I would look for a different doctor.  Also, can you just pay cash to see him?  I know it's not a great solution, but I would at least get a few months worth of xanax to taper off of.  In the long run, paying cash for a doctor will seem like a small price to pay for the luxury of being able to taper vs going cold turkey. 

Naw man....that would do nothing but add more stress. Drs. are clueless. Continue to score valium for the wife so she can reasonably taper and forgive the muhFucka. Revenge and benzo wd dont go together well. Good luck!

 

Thank you for the kind words, but this isn't about revenge.  It's about stopping him from hurting people.  I've already forgiven him.  I live in a state that is cracking down hard on the opioid and benzo epidemic.  I think I might have a chance to make a difference here.  Also, I don't have valium.  I wish I did.  I'm going through my own taper off of klonopin, also prescribed by guess who.

 

I would look for a different doctor.  Also, can you just pay cash to see him?  I know it's not a great solution, but I would at least get a few months worth of xanax to taper off of.  In the long run, paying cash for a doctor will seem like a small price to pay for the luxury of being able to taper vs going cold turkey. 

 

We are trying to find a new doctor for her but unfortunately few doctors are taking new Medicare patients because medicare doesn't pay enough.  On top of that, if we do find one, chances are we are going to get the "We don't prescribe those medications" treatment.  Here is another interesting fact.  He claims they "ended their contract with medicare and can no longer take medicare patients who don't have an advantage plan."  I called medicare to inquire about this and found out that if he takes medicare advantage plans he can in fact still take medicare because he has not opted out, but there is an old 1990's law that makes it so doctors can't ask their patients to pay cash, or accept it if they are on medicare.  I think he either truly believes he isn't doing anything wrong, or he thinks we won't do anything about it.  I think, and hope it's the former, but I don't know. 

This is from the WA state board of health on filing complaints:

 

 

What do I need to know if I'm thinking about submitting a complaint?

 

Our state has some of the finest healthcare providers in the United States. However, if you believe that the actions of a provider were inappropriate or may have caused mental or physical harm to you or someone else, you should consider filing a complaint.

 

Our mission is to protect the people of Washington. Although we have the responsibility to take corrective action against a healthcare provider, it is outside our authority to impose criminal or civil penalties. Our disciplinary actions focus on preventing further problems with a provider and assuring safe, competent care for the patients. By reporting potential violations you can play an important role in protecting the people of Washington.

 

The department may not be able to help you with many common complaints unrelated to patient safety. Such as, scheduling problems, personality conflicts or disputes over bills or insurance. We generally investigate reports involving fees or insurance claims only when there appears to be fraud involved.

 

If you're a licensed healthcare provider, it's important for you to know that some regulated health professionals are required by law to report information that another healthcare provider may be incompetent, guilty of unprofessional conduct or impaired and unable to practice safely. In circumstances such as this, the department and boards and commissions may take disciplinary action against a healthcare provider for failing to report any potential violation of the laws that govern the profession.

 

Reading that makes me feel like they are asking me to file a complaint.

 

 

Visions,

My heart goes out to you and your ex wife, now roommate. Oh what a mess and such a shame. I truly like what you said about this not being "revenge." Most of us who got damaged by benzos go through an anger stage, angry at your doctors. But in order to heal, one has to let that stuff just go...float off and just concentrate on getting healed. Anger and revenge will never help you do that.

 

You are not alone in finding inadequate care regarding benzo WD. My own medical doctor refused to prescribe my Klonapin every time I had to be in patient. I am sure you know what happened. Plus I was given IV Levaquin three or four times: floxxed. I was thrown into sudden withdrawal, and the hospital staff called a Psych consult for me. The doc who saw me treated me like I was just some neurotic little old lady. He suggested I start Seroquel. I knew I was not psychotic and refused. I wish I understood why the medical world is still not knowledgeable about this. I AM a medical professional! I am an RN  1982, and I can tell you that never once in my rigorous training or my full time work - even on a Detox Unit - did I EVER hear the truth about benzo WD. It all came as a huge shock. I was told that benzo WD could cause seizures but should only last maybe a month tops and feel sort of like the flu. LOL! NOT!

I am also on Medicare, as I am 69 years old. Medical care in the US has gown downhill rapidly. This worries me and especially you. Finding good care under Medicare is difficult. Because I know several physicians personally, I can tell you that most doctors are just as upset about this as you and I. I recently began doing the work, taking the continuing ed courses to get my RN license back on active status. Two of my doctor friends said to me "Annie, do not do this! You will be treated worse than you were 8 years ago when you quit working." I live in Florida, a state not known for intelligence or reason. LOL! And medical care here stinks.

I wish you all the luck in what you are doing to help her. I truly admire you. Feel free to PM me, if it might help.

east

Hi my story is a c/t story due to doctors intentional neglect. I so messed up from it he withdraws that I can’t even get in a car. I have so much rage over what has gone on with me the past year I’d love to sue the creep who started this c/t and no dr will or knows how to get me ok again. I’m not ok every day is living hell. I talked to one malpractice attorney but they would not take the case. Statute of limitations is winding down and I have no resolution to either the withdrawal symptoms or the legal portion. I wish I did. 

infuriating the medical community continued 100% negligence with benzos.

ill never get over or believe how no one out there seems to understand theres people like us suffering a horror that is beyond words

I am an RN of many years, and even I had NO idea this could happen. I was told in college that benzo wd could last maybe two weeks and there was a risk of seizures. That is ALL I was told, so that is what I believed. Oh how wrong that information was.

I went  CT off benzos in 20q2, at age 62. And had a truly horrific withdrawal. I still do not know if I had a seizure or not. it was that bad.

My medical doctor forced me to go cold turkey. He meant well, but nor did he know the immensity of how bad benzo WD can be. I was extremely angry at him for months. Eventually I had to settle down and forgive him, because: What I finally realized is that benzos had such a horrible grip on me, going CT was my ONLY chance at having a normal life. I finally saw that remaining angry was only holding me back from a real healing of this crap. I had to let go of that anger and move past it into a new and healthier life. I wrote him a long letter telling him the truth as I saw it back then. He probably never read it but writing it helped ME.

I have been on BB for almost 7 years now. I have seen and heard and experienced it all. You might want to read my Success Story. It was moved to Buddie Blogs but it remains my SS and one I am very proud of. Writing it was a HUGE deal for this lady. Go to Buddie Blogs (from BB's home page) and scroll down til you see "eastcoast's trip". Read at least the first three pages and you will find out you are NOT alone in this. Feel free to PM me, too.

east