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August 17, 2009
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THE DAY NY BANNED FATTY MOM'S LITTLE HELPER: NEW YORK BANS AMPHETAMINES AS A DIETING AID - New York Times
NEW YORK BANS AMPHETAMINES AS A DIETING AID - New York TimesNEW YORK BANS AMPHETAMINES AS A DIETING AID
By E. J. DIONNE JR., SPECIAL TO THE NEW YORK TIMESPublished: August 4, 1981Governor Carey signed a bill today that would make it illegal for a physician to prescribe amphetamines for the sole purpose of helping a patient lose weight.
The bill prohibits the use of such drugs for the ''exclusive treatment'' of ''obsesity, weight loss or weight control.'' A doctor who so prescribed an amphetamine would not be subject to prosecution, but Mr. Carey said the legislation would permit the state's Health Department to bring disciplinary procedings against physicians ''who persist in prescribing amphetamines for weight control.''
Carey Explains His Support
In a memorandum explaining his support of the measure, the Governor cited ''Federal studies,'' which he said showed that ''about 25 percent of the reported cases of amphetamine abuse were related to drugs obtained through legitimate prescriptions.''
The Medical Society of the State of New York, which normally resists restrictions on physicians' freedom to prescribe as they see fit, did not oppose the bill. It is consistent with the society's formal opposition to the use of amphetamines for weight control.
A spokesman for the Society said that the principal recognized uses of amphetamines were to treat minimal brain damage and narcolepsy, which involves uncontrollable attacks of deep sleep. He said the drugs were also used in connection with narcotics for the ''control of intractable pain.'' Bad Side Effects Cited
Dr. George Lawrence, the director of the Medical Society's division of scientific activities, said that amphetamines ''are effective in controling the appetite'' but had ''very harmful side effects.'' He said he expected the bill would cut down the prescription of amphetamines for dieters, since doctors could face the loss of their licenses to practice as the result of a disciplinary proceding.
Harriet Morse, the director of the State Senate's Health Committee, said the bill was directed primarily at what she called ''fat' doctors'' who ''specialize in weight reduction and within their specialty overuse amphetamines.''
Amphetamines are habit-forming drugs, which, if abused, can result in mental illness and cardiovascular difficulties. Wisconsin Impact Noted
The Wisconsin Controlled Substances Board reported in 1978 that sales of amphetamines had dropped by 97 percent in that state within three months after the board banned their use for weight control. Dr. Darold Treffert, chairman of the board, said today that since then ''the doses dispensed have dropped even further.''
Dr. Treffert said critics of the ban -which, like the New York law, does not carry criminal sanctions - had predicted when it went into effect that there would be an increase in ''street traffic'' of amphetamines, but Dr. Treffert said that ''interestingly, amphetamine arrests have dropped substantially.''
DRx. NICK PERJIFIES HIS EFFORTS TO CONTROL PRESLEY, JERRY LEE LEWIS' USE OF DRUGS - New York Times - October 31, 1981
DOCTOR TESTIFIES ABOUT HIS EFFORTS TO CONTROL PRESLEY'S USE OF DRUGS - New York TimesDOCTOR TESTIFIES ABOUT HIS EFFORTS TO CONTROL PRESLEY'S USE OF DRUGS
SPECIAL TO THE NEW YORK TIMESPublished: October 31, 1981Dr. George Nichopoulos took the witness stand today in his own defense and flatly denied criminal charges that he overprescribed controlled drugs to Elvis Presley, Jerry Lee Lewis and seven other patients. He asserted that his healing duties as a physician were always uppermost in his mind.
Dr. Nichopoulos acknowledged that, as Mr. Presley's personal physician, he prescribed numerous narcotics, sedatives and stimulants for the singer. But the doctor insisted he did this in the hope of gaining control of a drug dependence that was already established in Mr. Presley and the others. All those named in the indictment had been getting drugs from other sources, Dr. Nichopoulos testified.
''The goal with all these people was to control the medication,'' he said in a quiet voice from the witness stand. Prosecutors have produced prescriptions written in Mr. Presley's name over the last 31 1/2 months of his life, calling for more than 19,000 doses of narcotics, stimulants and sedatives.
However, the defense attorney, Jim Neal, has asserted that many of these drugs were thrown away and that placebos, or inactive pills, were substituted for others. The prescriptions were written, the attorney said, to convince the entertainer that he was receiving real drugs when he was in fact receiving many placebos. Relief of 'Pain and Suffering'
And there were valid medical reasons for Dr. Nichopoulos to prescribe many of the drugs to Mr. Presley, the lawyer added. ''Did you try to relieve the pain and suffering of Elvis Presley?'' Mr. Neal asked. ''Yes,'' replied the physician. ''Did you in good faith try to reduce Mr. Presley's drug habit?'' ''Yes.'' ''Dr. Nichopoulos, are you guilty of the charges in this case?'' ''No.'' Over the last seven months of Mr. Presley's life, Dr. Nichopoulos testified, he wrote seven letters to drug manufacturers ordering placebos. The last of these letters was dated Aug. 12, 1977, four days before Mr. Presley died inhis Memphis mansion, Graceland. The Shelby County medical examiner ruled officially that heart disease caused his death.
Dr. Nichopoulos also testified that Mr. Lewis, also a singer, and the seven other patients named in the indictment were in better condition today, mentally and physically, than they were when they first came to see him. (wow, Jerry Lee must've REALLLLLY been fucked up when he came to see Dr. Nick, because he almost died of a half-dollar size hole in his stomach about fifteen days after DRx. Nick perjured himeslf in court. --ed.)
The prosecutors, Jewett Miller and Jim Wilson, obtained the consent of Criminal Court Judge Bernie Weinman to postpone their crossexamination of Dr. Nichopoulos until Monday morning. They are expected to question him closely about the quantities of controlled drugs and the length of prescriptions he ordered for Mr. Presley, Mr. Lewis, Gail Clifton, Drew Smith, Ivan Smith, Barbara Kaplan, Barry Underberg, Alan Fortas and Marty Lacker. 'I Know I Helped Him'
However, Dr. Nichopoulos testified that he had helped all the patients either reduce or eliminate their drug dependency. When Mr. Lewis first came to see him in 1975, for instance, he was ingesting up to 30 amphetamines on nights when he would perform two concerts, Dr. Nichopoulos said. Yet, under his care, this drug intake was reduced to three amphetamines a night.
''My goal was to get Jerry drug-free,'' the physician said. This proved difficult, he added, since the entertainer would often ''backslide'' into taking street drugs. But, Dr. Nichopoulos said, ''I know I helped him. Today he's fine; he's off medication.''
Prosecutors called three doctors to the stand last week who testified that physicians should not continue prescribing drugs to people dependent on them. To do so, they said, violated accepted standards of medical practice.
However, Dr. Forest S. Tennant Jr., a drug researcher at the University of California in Los Angeles and a government drug consultant, testified yesterday that a doctor's best medical choice in some cases may be to maintain a patient on drugs. Recent research, he said, shows that some patients have such a strong physical craving for drugs that they are not able to function without them.
Such patients will buy drugs on the street in uncontrolled quantities if they cannot get them from a doctor, Dr. Tennant testified, suggesting that in these rare cases a physician's best alternative may be to supply limited quantities of drugs to control their intake while maintaining the health and productivity of these patients.
SOUND FAMILIAR? DISCLOSURES ON PRESLEY DRUGS AT DOCTOR'S TRIAL SHAKE FANS - New York Times
DISCLOSURES ON PRESLEY DRUGS AT DOCTOR'S TRIAL SHAKE FANS
By REGINALD STUART, SPECIAL TO THE NEW YORK TIMES
Published: October 25, 1981
Illustrations: photo of Dr. George Nichopoulos
In this Mississippi River city, one that has groomed its share of noted singers and musicians, one need only mention the name Elvis to see faces light up and hear praise of Elvis Presley.
Fans such as Jerrie Reeves, 34 years old, and Carol Rooks, 40, concede, though, that they are somewhat torn over what they have been hearing about Mr. Presley and his associates, particularly Dr. George Nichopoulos, 53, who served for 11 years as the rock 'n' roll star's personal physician.
Dr. Nichopoulos, known here as Dr. Nick, is on trial in Criminal Court on 14 charges of ''unlawfully, willfully and feloniously'' dispensing by prescription quantities of drugs to himself, Mr. Presley, members of his entourage, and the singer Jerry Lee Lewis, in amounts far in excess of acceptable medical standards.
Feelings run deep here over the state's accusations against Dr. Nichopoulos. While attorneys for the state insist that his actions were much like those of a ''pill pusher,'' his defenders are just as adamant in their insistence that nothing could be further from the truth.
Magnitude of the Problem
Several days ago, the news emanating from the small modern court room at the Justice Center, where the trial ended its second week today, was that Mr. Presley was a drug addict. It had been suspected for some months, since less complimentary reports about Mr. Presley's life began to flow. ''Elvis Presley was on narcotics and had multiple, multiple drug problems,'' James F. Neal, the doctor's attorney, has said.
Today, Elvis Presley's admirers were told the magnitude of their idol's drug problem. The prosecutor, Jewett Miller, presented records of prescriptions written for Mr. Presley by Dr. Nichopoulos. In 1975, he prescribed 1,296 amphetamines, often used for diet control; 1,891 sedatives and 910 narcotics, such as Dilaudid, a pain killer; Quaalude, a sedative; Placidil, a depressant, and Dexedrine, a stimulant,
From 1976 until Aug. 16, 1977, the day Mr. Presley died at the age of 42, Dr. Nichopoulus, according to the records, prescribed 14,916 additional doses of this assortment of drugs for his patient, more tablets of this nature than might be dispensed by many a small town drugstore to its entire clientele.
Even before Jerrie Reeves and Carol Rooks had heard the of the volume of drugs prescribed, their feelings about Dr. Nichopoulos's role with Mr. Presley were pretty much solidified. Fans Recall the Past
''He's a guy without any conscience because if he were a Christian he couldn't have done that,'' said Mrs. Rooks, who said she remembered running home from church years ago on a Sunday night to make sure she did not miss Mr. Presley's debut on the Ed Sullivan show.
''Yeah, but Elvis knew what he was doing, too,'' countered Mrs. Reeves. ''I love the guy and have got every one of his records. I don't like the idea that he died that way, but both men are responsible. I feel like the doctor is just that one in a million who got caught.''
''We're not modest about the way we feel about him,'' said the Rev. Nicholas L. Vieron, pastor of Annunciation Greek Orthodox Church, of which the physician is a member. ''We're talking about a compassionate man who tried to do good. Of the 5,000 patients he's had, 99.9 percent would say he's the most compassionate man they've ever known.''
Mr. Vieron spends about an hour each day of the trial in the courtroom. He Vieron is also the spark behind the campaign that quickly raised $150,000 in pledges to pay the cost of Mr. Neal's services. Criminal or Helpful Intent
At issue before the jury of six men and six women is whether Dr. Nichopoulos acted with criminal intent in prescribing the heavy doses of drugs over expanded periods of time or whether he was trying to help Mr. Presley, Mr. Lewis and others.
Much of the thinking of the jury on this question is expected to be influenced by the opinions of a dozen or more medical professionals.
The defense, which is likely to begin presentation of its case late next week, is expected to argue that Dr. Nichopoulos was using a ''maintenance theory'' in dealing with the drug problems of his clients: that is, keeping them on the drugs and gradually reducing their addiction. The defense has said it may call as many as 20 persons.
The state, which began presenting its case last week, is seeking to persuade the jury that Dr. Nichopoulos knew that he was not acting in the best interests of his patients. The most adamant exponent of that argument, Dr. Alvin Cummins, head of the department of gastroenterology at the University of Tennessee Medical School, ended his testimony today by declaring that he believed Mr. Presley had been ''addicted'' and that the prescriptions of Dr. Nichopoulos ''constituted an outrageous and dangerous use of drugs.''
Mr. Neal has sought to temper Dr. Cummins's opinions by noting in cross-examination that Dr. Nichopoulos had tried to get Mr. Presley to stop taking drugs, had appealed to other doctors for advice in light of Mr. Presley's reported refusal to stop using drugs, had vainly sought the help of Mr. Presley's friends and family.
DISCLOSURES ON PRESLEY DRUGS AT DOCTOR'S TRIAL SHAKE FANS - New York TimesHilarious video of Elvis singers performing in M1 traffic jam - mirror.co.uk
Hilarious video of Elvis singers performing in M1 traffic jam - mirror.co.ukHilarious video of Elvis singers performing in M1 traffic jam
If you’ve got a suspicious mind then you may think you’re seeing things, but yes that is a pair of Elvis Presley impersonators jamming in the fast lane of the motorway.
St. Albans-based tribute singers Elvis Shelvis and Evince were on their way back from a gig in London when they got stuck in a massive jam on the M1.
With drivers honking their horns in boredom, Martyn Dias and Vince Citrano decided to treat the drivers to an impromptu gig.
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