Pill mill doctors need the book thrown at them. This scourge of society has got to be reined in firmly and know what they are doing is not only criminal, it’s lethal!

A California doctor linked to a string of drug deaths and dubbed the “Candy Man” was arrested by federal agents on charges of trafficking huge quantities of powerful painkillers to addicts and women who provided sexual favors in exchange for the drugs.

Two female patients taken to a hospital emergency room indicated they were among numerous people who used sex to pay for drugs from suspect Julio Gabriel Diaz.

Some patients diverted the pills to the black market or suffered fatal overdoses. One man who died in November was prescribed over 2000 pills in the six weeks before he died.

Is He A Murderer?

Diaz, 63, is accused of supplying OxyContin, Vicodin and Norco and other drugs to addicts with no legitimate need for the powerful narcotics. He was arrested at his Goleta home.

He could face up to 20 years in prison if convicted.

Court documents say a dozen deaths have been linked to Diaz — over ten overdoses and a patient who died of natural causes with drug abuse as a contributing factor.

Diaz said that even in some cases in which he suspected a patient was abusing drugs, he would continue prescribing so that he could manage what they were taking.

Diaz has not been charged in connection with the deaths, which remain under investigation. A study by an insurance company documented nearly $1,000,000 in claims for prescriptions written by Diaz over a three-year period, the affidavit said.

A Cottage Hospital (in Santa Barbara) psychiatric therapist told investigators that “people referred to Diaz as the ‘Candy Man’ and that people drove from out of town to see him ‘because they knew he was the man to go to for drugs.’”

Shameful behavior by a man trusted to help make people well, not ill!

Add fetuses to the growing list of those addicted to prescription medication. No, that is not a typo, and really should come as no surprise.

Medical authorities are witnessing explosive growth in the number of newborn babies hooked on prescription painkillers, innocent victims of their mothers' addictions.

National statistics on the number of babies who go through withdrawal are not available, and states with the worst problems have only begun to collect data. Scattered reports show the number of addicted newborns has doubled, tripled or more over the past decade. In Florida, the epicenter of the illicit prescription drug trade, the number of babies with withdrawal syndrome soared from 354 in 2006 to 1,374 in 2010, according to the Florida Agency for Health Care Administration.

In response to the growing severity of the problem, the American Academy of Pediatrics convened a committee this year to revise its treatment guidelines for the babies. The new guidelines are set to be published next year.

The trend reflects how deeply rooted abuse of powerful narcotics, such as OxyContin and Vicodin, has become. Prescription drug abuse is the nation's fastest-growing drug problem, classified as an epidemic by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

"I'm scared to death this will become the crack-baby epidemic," says Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi. Last month, she asked the state Legislature to establish a task force to compile data on drug-exposed babies and develop prevention strategies.

Anyone who lived through that epidemic knows we have to take serious precautions when pregnant. Hopefully, pregnant mothers will cease using prescription medications and keep their fetuses healthy. A good online drug class is a good place to start and learn about the dangers of prescription painkillers.

For those of you who read my blog regularly you know how concerned I am about the abuse of prescription drugs in this country. There are entire businesses set up solely for the purpose of writing out prescriptions. These “pill mills” are becoming yet another bane of American society.

What these doctors who have no moral compass and prescribe pills for anyone with the cash to pay for the visit fail to realize is that they are ruining the lives of people. These people will become hopelessly addicted to these pills and suffer severe withdrawals when they try to kick the habit!

Prescription painkiller abuse has become America’s fastest-growing and most pervasive drug problem with millions of people now suffering from opiate addiction. But unlike cocaine, heroin and other addictions, a huge portion of these people did not start taking their drug by choice.

Drug to Help With Withdrawal

There is a new drug out claiming to help those addicted to opiates quit without suffering the horrible mood swings and depression associated with withdrawal. It is called, simply enough, Withdrawal-Ease.

The design of the product is to help those who have become addicted to painkillers like Hydrocodone, Suboxone, Oxycodone, Vicodin, Percocet and Oxycontin.

The jury is still out on this over-the-counter treatment. I will keep you in the loop as I hear more about it. For those seeking more information on drugs and drug classes I urge you to go to www.onlinedrugclass.com.

How many people drugs kill every year, I assure you the problem is bad and getting worse.

In 1979 the U.S. Government began tracking drug-related deaths and for the first time those deaths have surpassed the number of traffic fatalities on an annual basis.

The most recent statistics, taken in 2009, show that 36,284 people died in traffic related accidents while 37,485 people died from drug related activities in a one year period.

For those of you who read this blog regularly you know the primary culprit is prescription drugs, not street illegal drugs.  Some of the medications causing these deaths include Xanax, OxyContin and the main culprit Vicodin which killed more people than cocaine and heroin combined.

The primary lethal drug in the United States is literally right under our noses – on the bathroom sink or in the medicine cabinet.

The study also revealed that traffic related fatalities have actually fallen by a third since the 1970s even as the number of drivers using American roadways continues to increase, while drug related deaths have doubled in the last decade. Deaths among the 50-year-old to 69-year-old crowd have been even worse, tripling during the same time period.

Not all deaths have been related to drug overdoses from drug abuse, in many cases double dosing by adults has been the culprit.

In the meantime parents are urged to speak with their kids not just about street illegal drugs but also the medications found in medicine cabinets which can be just as addictive and just as deadly.

Perhaps a good online drug awareness class is in order.