The US Department of Justice reports that a Florida pharmacy owner and a Kentucky physician have accepted a plea bargain over charges of operating an illegal on-line distribution network for prescription drugs. The Internal Revenue Service's Criminal Division and the US Attorney's Office for the Southern District of California prosecuted Claude Covino and Subramanya Prasad, along with 16 other people, in relation to the Saveon Rx Pharmacy and Affpower, the latter being an on-line network of pharmaceutical retailers.
From May 2005 to June 2006, court documents reveal that Saveon Rx handled more than 200,000 orders for prescription drugs, often without proper medical supervision. Mr Covino pleaded guilty to charges as a part owner of the pharmacy and faces a maximum 25-year prison term, as well as forfeiting $831,560.
Dr Prasad, a registered physician in two US states, was alleged to have spent less than five seconds reviewing some patient questionnaires before approving prescription requests, being paid $3 per scrip for up to 1,000 patients per day. He faces up to five years jail and forfeits over $95,000.
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