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san96van · 2 years ago

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Maximize Efficiency and Productivity with IT Services in Lexington, KY

In today's technology-driven world, businesses of all sizes rely heavily on information technology (IT) to operate efficiently and stay competitive. However, managing complex IT systems and infrastructure can be overwhelming and time-consuming, especially for businesses without dedicated IT departments. This is where professional IT services in Lexington, KY, come in. By partnering with a reputable IT service provider, businesses can optimize their IT operations, enhance security, and maximize productivity. In this article, we will explore the key benefits of IT services and how they can help businesses thrive in Lexington, KY.

I. Streamlined IT Support and Maintenance:

Efficient IT support and maintenance are crucial for businesses to minimize downtime and ensure smooth operations. IT service providers offer comprehensive support, handling tasks such as software installations, system upgrades, and troubleshooting. With proactive monitoring, they can identify and address potential issues before they escalate, preventing disruptions to your business. By outsourcing your IT support and maintenance needs, you can focus on core business activities while ensuring that your technology infrastructure is reliable and up to date.

II. Network Infrastructure Optimization:

A robust and well-designed network infrastructure is essential for seamless communication, collaboration, and data transfer within an organization. IT service providers specialize in designing and optimizing network infrastructures tailored to the specific needs of businesses. They assess your current infrastructure, identify bottlenecks, and implement scalable solutions that can accommodate future growth. With an optimized network, businesses can enjoy faster and more reliable connectivity, enhanced data security, and improved overall performance.

III. Cybersecurity and Data Protection:

Data breaches and cyber threats pose significant risks to businesses, both in terms of financial loss and reputation damage. IT service providers prioritize cybersecurity and implement comprehensive measures to protect your sensitive information. These measures may include firewall installation, antivirus software deployment, regular security audits, and employee awareness training. By partnering with an IT service provider, businesses can mitigate the risk of cyberattacks, safeguard their data, and ensure compliance with industry regulations.

IV. Scalable Solutions and Flexibility:

As businesses grow and evolve, their IT needs change accordingly. IT service providers offer scalable solutions that can adapt to changing requirements. Whether you need to expand your infrastructure, implement new software, or support a remote workforce, IT service providers can tailor their services to meet your specific demands. With their expertise, businesses can seamlessly scale their IT capabilities without major disruptions, ensuring that technology aligns with their growth strategies.

V. Cost Savings and Predictable Budgeting:

Maintaining an in-house IT department can be costly, particularly for small and medium-sized businesses. IT service providers offer cost-effective solutions by providing access to skilled professionals at a fraction of the cost of hiring a full-time IT staff. Additionally, outsourcing IT services allows businesses to predict and control their IT expenses, eliminating unexpected costs associated with hardware failures, software licensing, and system upgrades. With predictable budgeting, businesses can allocate resources more efficiently and invest in other critical areas of their operations.

Conclusion:

IT services in Lexington, KY, offer businesses the opportunity to optimize their IT operations, enhance security, and improve productivity. By partnering with a reliable IT service provider, businesses can streamline their IT support, optimize their network infrastructure, protect their data, and enjoy cost savings. In today's digital age, embracing professional IT services is a strategic decision that enables businesses to focus on their core competencies while leaving their IT needs in the hands of experts.

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josghjoge1-blog · 5 years ago

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lukekarry-blog · 6 years ago

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#security audit lexington ky

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jamehenry67-blog · 6 years ago

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#security audit lexington ky

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sturatmike3333 · 6 years ago

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Cloud security is just one of the highly rising services that offer several of the functionalities as a traditional IT security. When it has to do with the security of your home or business, choosing the security business is vital. For them in that instance, net security for a service lexington ky is extremely important.

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evanmaya24-blog · 7 years ago

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Integrity will run the entire security audit for you with the benefit of industry expertise and an outsider's insight into your company's habits and procedures.

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randallbarry46-blog · 7 years ago

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clarksam923 · 2 years ago

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Increase the life span of your garage door opener Lexington

How long will my garage door opener last? If you want to know how long your garage door opener will last, look at the specs and the sort of motor that is being utilized. Garage door openers, like everything mechanical, are not built to endure forever. If you have long-lasting garage door openers, one thing is certain: performance standards may decline from what they were previously. With regular maintenance, the performance can last for 7 to 8 years. You may extend it to ten years if you have the expert support for planned maintenance. Get help from the garage door opener Lexington experts.

The varied life span of the garage door Lexington ky

If it is an electric garage door opener, you can use it for another 5 years despite the declining performance. However, if there is a significant technological advancement that has resulted in a change in rules and regulations, you must follow the trend. However, the upgrade has to be done as soon as possible. The life span of your garage door opener will also vary depending on the type. Some of the low-end models of the inexpensive kind will not last long. Some of the high-end models, like the Elite Series from Lift Master, one of the top brands for garage door openers, can last a long time.

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There are some other garage door Lexington ky models in the midrange, as well. So depending on the model, the durability will vary, and you can get suggestions from the professionals about what suits you best. Furthermore, garage door Lexington ky servicing pros can also give you ideal tips for long-term maintenance. There is also another possibility for you to enter into a contract for regular, periodic maintenance.

This is where you will profit the most. This is when the certified and experienced garage door Lexington ky professionals and officers will audit and inspect the garage door opener at regular intervals. The garage doors and accessories were thoroughly examined during the inspection. A detailed report of every single part is completely presented to you.

A recommendation is also made to the homeowner if there is any requirement for parts to be replaced or spares to be changed or repaired. If you pay attention to this report and all of the details, you may be able to significantly extend the lifespan of your garage door.

Sparse usage

Frequent usage is always going to be a limitation for the durability of the garage door opener. Using it sparingly will always benefit the homeowner in terms of ensuring the garage doors Lexington KY longevity.

Date of installation

Installation is one of the most important criteria as well. There is a sticker on the garage door as well as a garage door opener system. This gives you information about the date of installation and also the specifications for the particular brand and model. The actual physical age of the garage door opener control unit and the garage door is a criterion used to determine durability.

Conclusion

On this, the pros will offer you an estimate of when you should replace the garage door opener device. Aside from all of the previously stated critical factors, if you want to strengthen the security features of your garage door, you might consider replacing it with a new model. Installing new ones or upgrading to new ones is easy when garage door opener Lexington industry professionals accurately propose or advocate it.

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electricianlexingtonfayetteky · 5 years ago

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Electrician Lexington Fayette KY

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odclex123 · 5 years ago

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HIPAA Security Compliance - Protects Confidential Customer Health Information

HIPAA's stringent security standards require all organizations such as medical facilities, insurance companies, payers, payment decisions, insurance plans and clinical staff to fully comply with laws regarding safe transmission and storage of personal information about a person's well-being. To achieve compliance with the HIPAA Compliance Lexington KY, several steps must be taken, which are categorized below:

Develops Physical Alertness:

Computer networks play an important role in processing, storing and exchanging patient records between different health care facilities. Physical access to important information can be managed securely using the following steps:

· Create and implement policies that only license restricted and trusted people to access personal health and patient health data.

· Set up workstations and computers in risk-free facility areas and must be accessible to licensed employees. Devices such as computer systems, fax machines, printers, and copiers should be set in a way so that unauthorized persons cannot see information about the patient's health and his state of health.

· All computer programs must be protected with passwords and customer ID numbers to prevent unauthorized access. Passwords must be carefully protected so that unauthorized people cannot access them.

· Security systems must be in place to ensure that passwords are managed effectively and that human health information security is maintained if team members change roles or someone leaves the organization.

· �� All storage devices, replacement tapes, and computer equipment should be presented and appropriate journals kept.

· Any document that contains client health information but is not required in the office should be truncated to ensure that no one else can retrieve it.

Improve LAN Security

It is necessary to keep documents that are appropriate for the software and hardware created at the facility and to acknowledge their obligation to process information relating to the health status and health of customers. Risk analysis should be carried out by developing work flow diagrams to ensure that the technical characteristics of the system can be identified and eliminated. The computer network must be protected against infection or hacking by one of the protective measures specified below:

· Create an ideal portal protection that allows you to thoroughly inspect web content and remove unwanted aspects such as malfunctioning software and viruses.

· Antivirus tools, electronic branding, and software firewall protection should be around to rule out any kind of online threat.

· Proper handling of encryption must be followed when transmitting critical health data from the organization's network to the public network. The information must be strictly protected to protect it from unauthorized access or obstruction.

· The security system must continuously monitor the network for suspicious actions and improve the warning system to alert management to unwanted deviations from standard operating procedures.

Educate Employees About HIPAA Security Compliance

Well-trained staff on compliance services Lexington KY is the foundation of a successful company. It is imperative for organizations to raise awareness of the importance of handling details safely for the health of their customers. This protects medical facilities from legal action for employee or worker failure to comply with HIPAA standards. Companies must:

· Make teams accessible to HIPAA-compliant training programs as well as security compliance Lexington KY seminars to increase understanding of HIPAA standards.

· Offer training on password management and virus protection.

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· Conduct routine worker health assessments in HIPAA protection compliance training and update them regularly with the latest developments to improve your safety management skills and individual health and wellness information.

In order for an organization to meet the requirements of security compliance Lexington KY needed for HIPAA security, it is important to integrate software programs, equipment, and people effectively so that each is working in a coordinated and directed manner by management who continuously monitors and provides feedback, as well as site precautions that ensure the safe handling of patient health details.

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bountyofbeads · 6 years ago

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As overdoses soared, nearly 35 billion opioids — half of distributed pills — handled by 15 percent of pharmacies

https://wapo.st/2ORdCjS

As overdoses soared, nearly 35 billion opioids — half of distributed pills — handled by 15 percent of pharmacies

By Jenn Abelson, Andrew Ba Tran, Beth Reinhard and Aaron C. Davis | Published

August 12 at 10:00 AM ET | Posted August 12, 2019 2:20 PM ET |

By the time Clinton County coroner Steve Talbott arrived at the scene of an overdose in southern Kentucky, the bottles of prescription pain pills usually had vanished. Friends and relatives of the dead rarely had answers to Talbott’s questions: What kind of pills did they take and where did they come from?

A toxicology report often answered the first question. It was the second one that typically eluded Talbott. As overdose deaths soared, Talbott repeatedly called the state police, hoping they could identify the source of opioids poisoning his community, nestled in the foothills along the Tennessee border.

Now, with the release and analysis of a federal database tracking every pain pill sold in the United States at the height of the opioid crisis, one Clinton County pharmacy has come into sharp focus: Shearer Drug, located less than two miles from the funeral home that Talbott runs in Albany, Ky. The family-run pharmacy purchased nearly 6.8 million pills that contained hydrocodone and oxycodone from 2006 through 2012 — enough to give 96 pills each year to every person in the county of roughly 10,000 residents.

During this period, Shearer Drug procured more opioid pills on a per capita basis per county than any other retail pharmacy in the United States, according to The Post’s analysis of the federal database maintained by the Drug Enforcement Administration. In 2012 alone, Shearer Drug bought over 1.1 million pain pills — a 55 percent increase from 2006.

Kent Shearer, a 67-year-old pharmacist who has owned Shearer Drug since the late 1990s, according to state records, declined to discuss the volume of opioids dispensed at the pharmacy or answer other questions about his business. Shearer operates his pharmacy out of a building he has shared with a doctor who pleaded guilty in federal court in March to illegally prescribing opioids. Shearer and the doctor are business partners who co-own the building through a limited liability company, according to state records and the doctor’s lawyer.

“I just can’t make any comments,” said Shearer, whose name is emblazoned in gold on the pharmacy’s window.

Shearer Drug is among thousands of small, independent pharmacies — from Smith County Drug Center in Carthage, Tenn., to Zion Pharmacy in Kanab, Utah — that handled large volumes of hydrocodone and oxycodone from 2006 through 2012 and until now have largely avoided publicity for their roles in the epidemic.

The pharmacies and the opioids they purchased are revealed in the DEA’s Automation of Reports and Consolidated Orders System, known as ARCOS, which tracks every pain pill distributed nationwide. The Post and HD Media, which publishes the Charleston Gazette-Mail in West Virginia, waged a year-long legal battle for access to the database, which the government and the drug industry had sought to keep secret. A judge recently ordered the release of seven years of database records, which expose the paths of more than 70 billion pain pills distributed to about 83,000 pharmacies.

The DEA has maintained this database for roughly two decades but did not regularly mine the records to identify pharmacies buying unusual quantities of opioid pills, according to current and former DEA officials. The agency relies on drug companies and pharmacies to monitor and report suspicious purchases. Letting the industry police itself helped fuel the epidemic that has devastated communities and claimed nearly 100,000 lives from 2006 through 2012, lawyers for the local governments who are suing the drug companies contend.

“There’s plenty of blame to go around. I don’t know that anyone has been perfect in doing everything possible to eliminate the epidemic,” said B. Douglas Hoey, chief executive of the National Community Pharmacists Association, which represents about 15,000 independent pharmacies. “I do look to the DEA for leadership.”

Hoey cautioned against judging pharmacies based only on the number of opioids they handled. There are legitimate reasons small pharmacies can have outsize volumes, including proximity to a surgical center.

“The numbers don’t always tell the whole story,” Hoey said.

To study the pharmacies, The Post examined the total number of pills that contained oxycodone and hydrocodone sold to each pharmacy over the seven years, and other metrics, such as year-over-year orders and overdose death rates in the counties where the pharmacies are located. The review excluded some small cities that are designated as counties, which inflates the per capita calculations.

The analysis reveals nearly half of the opioid pills were purchased by just 15 percent of the drugstores, which include Shearer Drug and the other seven pharmacies mentioned in this article.

Many of the high-volume pharmacies had annual double-digit growth in pain pills and bought far more opioids than competitors in the same counties. The analysis also considered proximity to urban centers.

In Paintsville, Ky., where a winding creek snakes through the town of roughly 4,000 people, Value-Med Pharmacy and Medicine Cabinet Pharmacy purchased almost 20 million pills that contained oxycodone and hydrocodone from 2006 through 2012.

These two pharmacies accounted for 79 percent of the total opioid pills distributed to five drugstores in surrounding Johnson County.

The number of pain pills obtained by Medicine Cabinet surged more than 30 percent in both 2008 and 2009. Meanwhile, the death rate in the county climbed to nearly nine times the national rate. Owners for Value-Med and Medicine Cabinet did not return messages seeking comment.

Some of the pharmacies reviewed by The Post have had trouble with regulators or law enforcement, but for others there is no public record of any scrutiny by authorities. A DEA spokesman said he could not provide a complete list of all enforcement actions by the agency against pharmacies nationwide for violations of the Controlled Substances Act.

An hour east of Nashville, in the small town of Carthage, Tenn., orders of pills that contained oxycodone and hydrocodone skyrocketed about 74 percent from 2006 through 2012 at Smith County Drug Center, a stately brick pharmacy with white columns.

Smith County Drug Center bought 9.5 million opioid pills, or more than half the painkillers distributed to the county’s five pharmacies in those seven years. Smith County has roughly 19,000 people.

In all, Smith County Drug Center acquired enough opioids to give each person in the county 72 pills every year from 2006 through 2012. In that time, a total of 21 people died of opioid overdoses in the county, nearly three times the national death rate.

Janet Trainham, who identified herself as an owner of the pharmacy, declined to discuss the store’s opioid sales when reached by phone.

“I’m not going to comment on that,” Trainham said and then hung up. Follow-up calls and messages were not returned.

On Aug. 25, 2016, the DEA sent the pharmacy a “Letter of Admonition” identifying certain deficiencies, according to Kevin McWilliams, a DEA spokesman in the agency’s Louisville field office. These DEA letters are not public and the agency would not reveal specifics. But McWilliams said the letters are “issued for matters relating to errors in record-keeping or security deficiencies.”

He said the concerns raised in the letters are not criminal and provide pharmacies with the ability to take corrective action. McWilliams said there are no subsequent regulatory actions on file for Smith County Drug Center.

Even with repeated scrutiny from regulators, some pharmacists and their drugstores have continued to stay in business.

In 2000, James Fred Carrico was fined $500 by the Kentucky Board of Pharmacy for failing to properly dispense Percocet, among other issues, when he served as a pharmacist at a Walgreens in Louisville, according to board records.

Five years later, Carrico opened Booneville Discount Drugs in Owsley County, Ky., where a statue of the pioneer Daniel Boone is perched above the store’s burgundy sign. Carrico’s drugstore went on to purchase about 2.9 million pain pills from 2006 through 2012 — or more than 70 percent of the total pain pills distributed to the county’s three pharmacies, according to the database.

That is the equivalent of 86 pills for each person every year in this impoverished community along the South Fork of the Kentucky River. Like many parts of Appalachia once rich in natural resources, Owsley has been ravaged by the disintegration of the timber and coal industries.

State records show that Carrico has faced alcohol- or drug-related charges eight times since 2009, and five times, the charges resulted in convictions. The pharmacy board suspended his license in 2011 and cited his arrest for driving under the influence several months earlier.

In 2012, Carrico and another pharmacist at the store paid a total of $60,000 to settle civil allegations that they improperly dispensed drugs, according to the Lexington Herald Leader. A DEA audit had found the Booneville pharmacy failed to maintain inventory records on controlled substances 65 times over 18 months. A spokesman for the U.S. attorney said he could not provide records on the case. Former U.S. attorney Kerry B. Harvey in the Eastern District of Kentucky declined to comment.

Despite more than a decade of documented problems, the Kentucky Board of Pharmacy in 2013 voted to reinstate Carrico’s license with restrictions, according to board minutes. Carrico, 66, could not be reached for comment, and has been hospitalized since a fall in June, said his son, Matthew Carrico.

His son told The Post his father never worked behind the counter of the pharmacy after 2012, when the younger Carrico said he took over the pharmacy.

Matthew Carrico, 36, said that his father was a recovering alcoholic and struggled again after the 2009 killings of his wife and mother-in-law, which remain unsolved.

“You can only do so much to help someone,” said the younger Carrico, who serves on the board of directors for the Kentucky Pharmacists Association.

He said he fired his dad from the pharmacy in 2018. State records document a change in ownership a month after one of his father’s arrests.

“I could not distance myself more,” Matthew Carrico said.

Still, he defended the pharmacy’s high volume of opioids during his father’s tenure, saying that roughly 40 percent of his customers came from two nearby counties and that many of them were recovering from injuries sustained working in the coal industry and other manual labor jobs. He said opioid prescriptions at Booneville have decreased since 2014, when the federal government tightened rules for prescribing hydrocodone.

Carrico said he typically won’t fill pain pill prescriptions for doctors who aren’t in Owsley or the surrounding counties and that he is often berated for refusing to refill prescriptions before they are due. The pharmacy gives out free naloxone, which can treat opioid overdoses, a program that is advertised in the drugstore window.

“People might say the pharmacists don’t care. I do care,” Carrico said. “This epidemic is destroying this area. How would I have any business if I helped facilitate this problem? I don’t want people to think I’m part of the problem because I’m not.”

In New Mexico, Davis-Fleck United Pharmacy bought nearly 4.5 million opioid pills from 2006 through 2012, or the equivalent of 53 pills for every person in Sierra County, The Post’s analysis shows.

That volume may have attracted the attention of the DEA several years ago, according to owner Ron Golubski, who said agents visited him at the store located in the town of Truth or Consequences. The pharmacist said he explained that he managed accounts for four hospice facilities and, for a long time, was the only drugstore in a county that draws many retirees and veterans.

“My numbers are greatly skewed. I did not doubt that,” Golubski said.

Golubski said he attempts to combat the diversion of pain pills by ensuring prescriptions are legitimate, and reporting patients who have attempted to use doctored prescriptions and a physician suspected of running a pill mill.

“I’m just one little drugstore in the desert and we do our best to try and curb it,” Golubski said. “Once it leaves here, it’s out of my control.”

Many of the top-dispensing pharmacies nationwide have changed hands since 2012, and several of the new owners said in interviews that opioid prescriptions had fallen in recent years. They attributed the decline to more stringent prescribing habits by doctors and increased scrutiny by their pharmacists. The opioid epidemic has also morphed: It started with prescription pills, which led to increased heroin use, and has now spawned the fentanyl crisis.

“There just weren’t any brakes put on the supply and the volume of opiates that went through our pharmacies until the last four or five years,” said Kurtney Stirland, the former owner of Zion Pharmacy in Kanab, Utah.

From 2006 through 2012, Stirland’s pharmacy purchased nearly 2.5 million pills that contained hydrocodone and oxycodone, or about 80 percent of the pills distributed to the three retail pharmacies in the county.

In 2009, state records show that he was fined by the DEA and disciplined by the Utah Board of Pharmacy for various problems at his pharmacy, including failing to conduct an annual inventory and maintain required controlled substance forms.

Stirland said he was “negligent” with the record keeping but never dispensed opioids without prescriptions. He said he also blames the drug manufacturers and distributors for the opioid epidemic.

“We all got caught off guard as the years went by,” said Stirland, who sold the business in 2016 and still works there part-time. “I think there’s a huge profit motive by the manufacturers and the wholesalers. I think they kind of hung the independent pharmacies out to dry.”

Karsten Josie, a pharmacist who started two years ago at Zion Pharmacy under the new owner, said the pharmacy takes a very strict approach to pain pills. Josie, whose grandmother died of opioid-related problems several years ago, said he counsels every customer on addiction risks and symptoms of dependence, and informs them about the anti-overdose medication naloxone. At the same time, he encourages people to consider other pain therapies.

“Taking an opioid shouldn’t be a norm. It should be an exception,” Josie said. “I try not to alienate patients. … However, it’s my job to scrutinize that. There has to be more education on alternative options and more realistic expectations of pain and how much you’ve got to bear. I give it my best shot.”

The pharmacy’s current owner, Scott Robinson, said wholesalers put a ceiling on opioid purchases and he has never hit it.

Some of the stores with the top pill counts have shuttered entirely, including Tug Valley Pharmacy in Williamson, W.Va., which bought nearly 9 million opioid pills from 2007 through 2012.

In July, Tug Valley Pharmacy’s owner, Samuel “Randy” Ballengee, was indicted as part of criminal charges filed against opioid distributor Miami-Luken and two of its former executives, accusing them of conspiring to pour millions of addictive pain pills into West Virginia, Kentucky and Ohio. Ballengee and his attorney did not return messages seeking comment.

Three former DEA officials who spoke with The Post said the agency lacked the resources to police pharmacies from 2006 through 2012. This was partly because drugstores were rarely the starting point for investigations, said Barbara J. Boockholdt, who was then the chief of the regulatory section of the DEA’s Diversion Control Division.

“If you go into a pharmacy, you have to show that the prescriptions are not legitimate — we just didn’t have time,” Boockholdt said. “One of my favorite quotes from that period of my life was: Too many bad guys, too little time.”

In Clinton County, Ky., it took many years, and far too many deaths, before law enforcement began paying attention to the crisis, according to Talbott, the county coroner. Since 2006, 41 people have died of prescription opioid overdoses in the county, records show.

The federal investigation began in 2015 after Talbott noticed multiple overdose deaths involving patients of a local physician, Michael L. Cummings, and the Kentucky Board of Medical Licensure expert found Cummings’s treatment of several patients fell below minimum standards of care, court records show.

In 2017, Cummings was charged in federal court with the illegal distribution of controlled substances, which resulted in the deaths of three patients, according to court records. Between 2009 and 2014, Cummings wrote prescriptions for an average of over 249,000 oxycodone pills, 438,000 hydrocodone pills and 347,000 benzodiazepine pills per year.

Court records do not identify the name of the drugstore where those prescriptions were filled but note that “a pharmacy, located in a small town and county in southern Kentucky, was one of the largest dispensers of controlled substances in the entire state. [Cummings] was far and away the largest source of prescriptions for the pharmacy.”

Cummings had his medical practice in the same building as Shearer Drug in Albany. The 6.8 million opioid pills bought by Shearer Drug from 2006 through 2012 accounted for 66 percent of the total ordered by the county’s five pharmacies, according to The Post’s analysis.

Shearer, who opened a second pharmacy a few miles away in 2016, told The Post he had not faced past enforcement action and declined to discuss his business relationship with Cummings.

Cummings pleaded guilty in federal court in March to 13 counts of illegally prescribing controlled substances outside the course of professional medical practice and without a legitimate purpose. He was sentenced on July 24 to 30 months in prison and ordered to pay a $400,000 fine.

“Michael Cummings was a guy who lived his life dedicated to his family, his church and his patients. And he did a lot of good,” said Kevin Tierney, an attorney for Cummings.

Talbott, who said he grew up with Shearer and attended the same school, hasn’t talked to the pharmacist in a few months.

When Talbott, 67, learned from The Post’s analysis that Shearer Drug had purchased nearly 6.8 million pills that contained hydrocodone and oxycodone over seven years, the county coroner responded: “It’s a lot of pain medication for this little town.”

Talbott said the overdose deaths have waned since Cummings was indicted in 2017, but the epidemic is far from over.

“There were just too many people dying from these drugs in such a small place,” Talbott said. “I hate these drugs. They are awful.”

Steven Rich, Aaron Williams, Julie Tate, Scott Higham, Sari Horwitz and Michael S. Williamson contributed to this report.

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growlegalweed-blog · 6 years ago

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Late in the evening of December 10, 2018, the 2018 Farm Bill House/Senate Conference Committee released its Conference Report. The 807-page document is nearly half a foot tall. Hemp is discussed in only a few handfuls of pages. But the impact on the industry is monumental:

• The era of hemp prohibition is over. Hemp is now permanently removed from the Controlled Substances Act (CSA). It is forever deemed an agricultural commodity, no longer mistaken as a controlled substance, like marijuana.

• By redefining hemp to include its “extracts, cannabinoids and derivatives,” Congress explicitly has removed popular hemp products — such as hemp-derived cannabidiol (CBD) — from the purview of the CSA. Accordingly, the Drug Enforcement Administration no longer has any possible claim to interfere with the interstate commerce of hemp products. This should give comfort to federally regulated institutions — banks, merchant services, credit card companies, e-commerce sites and advertising platforms — to conduct commerce with the hemp and hemp product industry.

• Hemp farmers now may finally access needed crop insurance and can fully participate in USDA programs for certification and competitive grants.

• State and Tribal governments may impose separate restrictions or requirements on hemp growth and the sale of hemp products – however, they cannot interfere with the interstate transport of hemp or hemp products. We are hopeful that local and state officials will follow Congress’ lead, as well as the statements and resolutions of the World Health Organization and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) that declare, after intense scientific scrutiny, that CBD is safe, non-toxic, and non-addictive.

• The FDA continues to exercise jurisdiction over the regulation of ingestible and topical hemp products. We applaud the agency’s continued efforts to crack down on bad actors who undermine the industry through misguided marketing claims. And while we are concerned about non-binding statements made by the FDA that have led some state and local officials to question the legality of the retail sale of hemp-derived CBD, we are hopeful that we can work with the agency to clarify that CBD – which their own scientists concluded has no abuse potential and does not pose a risk to public health – should not be withheld from Americans who count on it for their health and wellness.

SECTION BY SECTION

Section 7129 (p. 313): Includes hemp in USDA’s supplemental and alternative crops programs.

Section 7501 (p. 338): Includes hemp in USDA’s critical agricultural materials programs.

Section 7605 (p. 347): Orders the USDA Secretary to prepare a report on the 2014 Farm Bill pilot program, and then repeals that program one year after the new permanent hemp program is created.

Section 10113 (p. 429): The guts of the new permanent legalization regime:

• Section 297A (p. 429) Defines hemp as all parts of the plant less than 0.3% THC, including “derivatives,” “extracts” and “cannabinoids” and permits hemp production in all states and territories.

• Section 297B (a)-(d) (p. 429) Empowers states and Tribes to submit plans to USDA to implement a permanent hemp growing program. Requires information gathering, testing, inspection and disposal

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procedures. The USDA Secretary must sign off on, or reject, the plan within 60 days, and consult with the Attorney General. The Secretary can later audit state programs and work with the states to develop corrective action plans where there is noncompliance.

• Section 297B(e)(p. 431): Orders states and Tribes to develop procedures to address violations, including corrective action in the case of negligence.

• Section 297B(e)(3)(B) (p. 432): Individuals who commit drug felonies cannot participate in state or Tribal growth programs for 10 years following the date of their conviction. However, participants in the 2014 Farm Bill pilot programs are grandfathered in to participate in permanent programs despite any prior felony committed.

• Section 297C (p. 432): States and Tribes are required to maintain information on lands where hemp is grown and testing, enforcement, inspection and disposal procedures. The USDA Secretary must collect such information to be accessible in real time to local, state and federal law enforcement.

• Section 297D (p. 434): The USDA Secretary is required to promulgate guidelines and regulations and submit an annual report to Congress on the program’s implementation.

• Section 297D(c)(p. 434): Nothing in the new law affects the FDA’s authority under the Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act or the Public Health Service Act.

Section 10114 (p. 435): Nothing in the act prohibits the interstate commerce of hemp, nor can States or Tribes prohibit the transportation of hemp or hemp products through their territory.

Title XI (p. 439): Hemp farmers are made eligible for crop insurance, and marketability requirements for the crop insurance program can be waived.

Section 12619 (p. 540): Hemp is removed from the definition of “marihuana,” and THC found in hemp is excluded from the definition of a controlled substance.

Key notes from the Conference Report Managers’ Summary:

p. 738: The Managers note that “state and Tribal governments are authorized to put more restrictive parameters on the production of hemp, but are not authorized to alter the definition of hemp or put in place policies that are less restrictive.”

p. 738: The Managers note that the USDA Secretary must consult with the Attorney General regarding approval of state or Tribal plans, but “the Managers intend that the final decision to be made by the Secretary.” States or Tribes can appeal or resubmit plans that are rejected or revoked.

p. 739: Any drug felonies committed after the permanent program begins will ban participants from participating, regardless of whether they participated in the 2014 Farm Bill pilot program.

p. 739: The USDA Secretary must make program information accessible in real time to law enforcement, and is encouraged to develop a memorandum of understanding to define the parameters of this information sharing.

p. 739: “While states and Indian tribes may limit the production and sale of hemp and hemp products within their borders, the Managers, in Section 10122, agreed to not allow such states and Indian tribes to limit the transportation or shipment of hemp or hemp products through the state or Indian territory.”

The U.S. Hemp Roundtable is the hemp industry’s leading business trade association. The Roundtable involves more than 60 businesses – representing all parts of the hemp food chain, from seed to sale – as well as all of the major national grassroots organizations in the industry. The Roundtable’s primary mission has been to support lobbying efforts to secure permanent legalization of hemp and hemp products at the federal and state level.

Jonathan Miller, General Counsel to the U.S. Hemp Roundtable, is the Member-in-Charge of Frost Brown Todd LLC (Lexington KY) and the former Kentucky State Treasurer.

Contact: Jonathan Miller [email protected]; (859) 244-3218

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