A Kentucky doctor and his former office assistant pleaded guilty on Aug. 7 for their roles in unlawfully distributing opioids and other controlled substances during a time when the defendants did not have a legitimate medical practice. As part of their guilty pleas, the defendants admitted to using Facebook messenger to sell unnecessary prescriptions for opioids. According to their plea agreement, Serissa Akers exchanged prescriptions written by Dr. Akers for cash in parking lots around Pikeville. The defendants also admitted that Dr. Akers performed no physicial examinations that would justify these parking-lot prescriptions, and failed to engage in other measures that prevent the abuse and diversion of opioids. The defendants continued operating their opioid-delivery scheme even after they came under investigation and up until the moment when Dr. Akers’s medical license was suspended.
