The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Thursday warned that people taking medications for ADHD, or attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder, could face disruptions in getting medications after two executives were arrested in a $100 million fraud scheme.
Federal prosecutors on Thursday charged the CEO and head doctor of Done Global with fraud in an alleged scheme to provide "easy access" to Adderall and other stimulants.
"They generated over $100 million in revenue by arranging for the prescription of over 40 million pills," said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Nicole M. Argentieri, head of the Justice Department's Criminal Division, in a statement, adding these were the DOJ's "first criminal drug distribution prosecutions related to telemedicine prescribing through a digital health company."
The CDC in its warning said 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."
"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," it added.
The DOJ said Ruthia He, the founder of Done Global, and David Brody, the company's clinical president, allegedly prescribed Adderall and other addictive medications to patients who purchased a monthly subscription through the company's platform.
"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 said in a 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."