In McMinnville, Tennessee, Michelle Shaw found herself caught in a painful cycle. The 56-year-old, who had relied on opioid painkillers since a back injury a decade ago, endured monthly visits to a pain clinic. Ironically, the shots she received were meant to alleviate her back pain, but they only exacerbated her suffering. Shaw revealed in an interview with KFF Health News and in sworn courtroom testimony that the clinic insisted she undergo three to four excruciating injections along her spine in exchange for her painkiller prescriptions.
The clinic purported that these injections were steroids designed to relieve her pain. However, Shaw recounted how each shot intensified her agony. When she attempted to refuse the injections, the clinic gave her an ultimatum: take the painful shots or seek pain relief elsewhere. Feeling cornered, Shaw testified, “I had nowhere else to go at the time. I was stuck.”
Shaw’s experience was not an isolated incident. Pain MD, a multi-state pain management company, employed a controversial practice of pairing opioid prescriptions with monthly injections into patients’ backs. This method aimed to alleviate pain and potentially reduce reliance on painkillers. The clinic’s approach was under scrutiny as many doctors were already scaling back on prescription opioids due to the growing opioid crisis.
In the trial of Pain MD president Michael Kestner, who was convicted of 13 felonies related to health care fraud in October, Shaw emerged as a pivotal witness. Her testimony shed light on the company’s scheme, which was built on unnecessary injections that preyed on patients’ dependence on opioids. The Department of Justice successfully argued that Pain MD’s injections were part of a fraud scheme that had spanned over a decade.
Years later, the truth behind Pain MD’s injections came to light during Kestner’s trial. The prosecution revealed that these injections, billed as “tendon origin injections,” were largely ineffective. Medical experts testified that the injections were inaccurately administered, targeting the wrong body part and containing numbing medications instead of steroids. The court documents further revealed that the injections were based on test shots given to cadavers rather than actual medical research.
Through the testimonies of former patients and medical providers, it became evident that Pain MD’s injections did not alleviate pain as promised. Patients like Shaw and Patricia McNeil testified that they endured the shots solely to maintain access to their painkiller prescriptions. Despite the unbearable pain caused by these injections, they felt compelled to comply with the clinic’s demands to avoid withdrawal symptoms.
Shaw’s harrowing experience of leaving the clinic in a wheelchair after receiving injections that left her unable to walk painted a grim picture of the pain management company. The desperation of patients like Shaw and McNeil to comply with the clinic’s demands showcased the extent of their dependence on opioids and the lengths they went to for relief.
The trial also highlighted the financial aspect of Pain MD’s scheme. Billing government programs for hundreds of thousands of unnecessary injections, the clinic profited significantly from these fraudulent practices. The prosecution’s case against Kestner and Pain MD laid bare the extent of their deception and exploitation of patients for financial gain.
As the trial unfolded, it became clear that Kestner’s insistence on injections was driven by profit rather than patient care. Former employees testified that Kestner prioritized injection rates, pressuring medical providers to administer more shots. The revelation that Kestner was not a medical professional but played a pivotal role in dictating medical practices at Pain MD underscored the unethical nature of the clinic’s operations.
Despite attempts by Pain MD’s defense to justify their focus on injections as a means of diversifying treatment options, the court found these practices to be fraudulent. The insistence on injections did not address the underlying issue of opioid dependence among patients. Instead, it perpetuated a cycle of unnecessary treatments to maintain patients’ reliance on painkillers.
The trial of Pain MD and its leadership revealed a disturbing truth about the intersection of healthcare and fraud. The exploitation of vulnerable patients for financial gain highlighted the urgent need for stricter oversight and regulation in the healthcare industry. The victims of Pain MD’s scheme, like Shaw and McNeil, serve as a cautionary tale of the consequences of unchecked medical malpractice and exploitation.
