Nearly a fifth of the citys residents live below the poverty line, and many are afflicted with chronic diseases that often accompany the stresses of a low income. Young had an active channel on Periscope, where he and Phillips drank and waxed philosophical. The opioid epidemicwhich appears to only be getting worsehas made clear that wherever pain exists in America, grifters will follow. He soon opened a new clinic, which he called GeneXis Health. Yeah, thats prettythats very distressing. When one patient told Young over Facebook Messenger that she was in shitty health and about to jump off a bridge, he prescribed her a cocktail of several different drugs, including fentanyl. I expected to hear lots of horror stories of abuse and mistreatment. On my trip, I strolled by a glass case near the federal courthouse that held a large Bible opened to the Gospel of John. Several others dismissed the notion that Young could be sexually coercive. 40 members in the TDBauto community. Other female patients checkout sheets simply said No charge., Though he portrayed himself as harmlessly vulgar, Young could, in fact, get violent with women. Prosecutors say Young used his rebellious persona to take advantage of patients, distributing highly addictive painkillers on demand and in large quantities for profitand, often, his own sexual gratification. Well all be killed., It helped that Young had prominent friends he could call on for help. Then it rewinds into nothingness.). They thought I was basically lazy and just wanted to have pain pills, just for whatever reason. Khazan: Ive talked to a lot of patients over the years who feel very uncomfortable around their doctors. This is Aalto. Never give up God is full of second chances, one woman wrote. Its joined at points by a line of harmony played on a synthesizer.). Supposedly candid confessions from Young about his life are interspersed with complimentary interviews with patients. One story I found in a letter from Jeffs nursing-board case stuck with me. But as I talked to more patients, they started saying things that really surprised me. In one scene, he and his best friend, a pharmaceutical representative named John Kevin Phillips, broadcast themselves on the video-streaming app Periscope. States largely rely on medical boards to regulate practitioners, but these entities have a reputation for leniency. He didnt pull any punches, she said. But it seemed like she wasnt the only one getting pain meds from the Rock Doc. Khazan: Jeff had been good to Tanya in the clinic, which was an experience that she didnt usually have with doctors. You may not like what I stand for. I asked to speak with him for this story, but because of a gag order on the case, his lawyer declined interviews with me. And doctorswho work in what is, after all, a service professionsometimes feel that its easier to pacify the patient than to push back. Longoria: Olga Khazan is a staff writer at The Atlantic whos been covering the opioid epidemic for the last seven years. (She did not want to be named for fear of jeopardizing her business.) Visit our website terms of use at www.wnyc.org for further information. (Droning music, reflective and cool, plays.). Early in the epidemic, Purdue gave doctors OxyContin fishing hats and swing-music CDs to encourage them to prescribe more of the drug. They painted a picture of the kind of medical office where you might actually want to hang out. When I visited the clinic shortly before the hearing, Young had just finished up with a patient. Jackson, Tennessee. Even after this, she returned to Young as a patient. His small fiefdom of followers created a mini echo chamber, feeding back approval and encouragement. If you speak against me, she remembers him saying, youre gonna regret it.. He exhibited a certain tenderness as he filled syringes and sutured skin. And whats remarkable about the Rock Doc is that he streamed his private interactions with patients online. Sometimes patients seeking opioids go to different providers until they find one who is willing to prescribe to them. Tune in today! Youre just probably not feeling good. But they never believed us. Young was, in short, a medical provider who acted like everyones best friend. But he, uh He was true to himself; lets say that. So it just kind of, I guess, comforted me. In November 2016, the health department threatened to file charges against Young before the board of nursing. Calles: I just wasnt getting the care I needed. Though both she and Reaves said Young should be held accountable for anything he did wrong, Stephanie told me that she forgave him. Part of the judges reasoning was that Youngs Facebook posts showed a propensity for violence., Young continued blogging from jail, somehow managing to write a few posts for a website that promotes medical providers rights to prescribe opioids freely. Stephanie, who returned to Youngs clinic after the incident at the club, said Young helped her more than any doctor shes ever seen. Hey, are you paying attention? Whats up kids? Listen to the trailer for. The daughter, Melody, actually works in her dad's vet clinic. Moreover, throwing some glimpse of lights to his personal life, Dr. Jeff is a happily married man. The resulting addictions were blamed on reckless patients, rather than the fundamental chemistry of the opioids themselves. She doesnt believe the allegations against him, and chalks them up to pure jealousy. (A long moment of music with no narration before it fades out. Khazan: There was this really big series of indictments that came down in 2019 where the federal government said, You know what? In one post, tagged with American holocaust, he writes, I have always been a survivor and have scars of significance to symbolize thus, and this is where they have underestimated me and my resolve., In March 2020, after the coronavirus pandemic broke out, Young petitioned the court to be released to house arrest because he was on immunosuppressive drugs for a kidney transplant he had years ago and was concerned about the risk of complications from COVID-19. Jeff refilled M.Y.s prescriptions for Percocet and Valium and gave him a new one for hydrocodone. It wasnt like any medical office Id ever been to. He wasnt in pain. Federal prosecutors who charged him in a massive opioid bust say he overprescribed painkillers, often for money, notoriety, and sexual favors.. One of his patients, Helena Louvaris, told me that Young saved her life by putting her on a diet plan. He blasted heavy metal at his private practice and filled his Instagram feed with photos of himself smoking cigars. Our team also includes Gabrielle Berbey, Emily Botein, Matt Collette, Tracie Hunte, and me, Natalia Ramirez. The next year, Jeff prescribed M.Y. (A long beat of music. His friend Melanie Lupino, a local bartender, said he got girlfriends easily, so she was baffled by the notion that he would have to give people drugs to get sex. (The synthesizer takes over the harmony, traipsing up and down the melody line before it quiets and the episode ends.). One of the differences between physicians and nurse practitioners is that physicians are regulated by a state Board of Medicine, while in most states, nurse practitioners are regulated by a state Board of Nursing. Scott Deberry: Kinda made it start seeming like he was unprofessional. 1:32. Jeffrey Young was one of those people. The week that followed Martin Luther King Jr.s assassination was revolutionaryso why was it nearly forgotten? You may not like my piercings. Hes so cute thats my brother and my best friend, Young says, giving Phillips a gentle kiss. Hes a great doctor and never has he acted any way towards me but professional! one woman wrote. (They relied on messages obtained by agents during the investigations into Young.) (There were different Jeff Youngs in [the Records Management System] and I had very little information so he was not added to the report, the police report states.) Most of these doctors werent like Jeff. Young: (Over the sound of a pool-filtration system.) was found dead of an apparent overdose. Officials were well aware of the allegations surrounding him over this period: The states health department had received at least 13 complaints about Young since 2015. (Four years later, the health department received a complaint about this testosterone sideline, but the complaint was never assigned to an investigator, according to Pickering.) One person with knowledge of the case gave me a list of several women who, the person believed, were having sex with Young in exchange for drugs. He refilled MYs prescriptions for Percocet and Valium, and also prescribed him hydrocodone. ), Jeff Young: Are we live? Khazan: Does that change how you feel about him? To one patient, who he prescribed hydrocodone, amphetamines, and fentanyl, he said, I accept all insurance. Purdue ad doctor: These drugswhich, I repeat, are our best, strongest pain medicationsshould be used much more than they are for patients in pain. Young: Very nice. She was referred to Jeff by one of her friends. Khazan: Jeff was working as a nurse practitioner at a clinic called Preventagenix in Jackson, Tennessee. I dont like him asking out my daughter But even then, I still went to him, and my ex-husband still went to him. But, in theory, there should have been a check on all this. had lower back pain and complained of numbness in his left arm. His lawyer also declined to answer any specific allegations. Patel left soon after. Two bouncers made sure she got home, but when she woke up in bed the next morning, her eyes were black, her nose was broken, and her mouth was bleeding. The judge denied this request, in part because, he wrote, Young has chosen to not wear a mask or practice social distancing consistently in jail., In September, Gutgsell, Youngs former office manager, pleaded guilty to federal charges for her involvement in prescribing opioids without a legitimate medical purpose.*. Its often called the invisible illness, because, even though the pain is very real for the person experiencing it, some doctors dont take it seriously. Tanya Ballard: I think people are Just didnt like Jeff. Branding himself as the "Rock Doc," he flooded his social media accounts with images of a party-loving lifestyle, vitriol for his "haters" and even a pilot episode for a reality TV show . People who criticized Young swiftly became his enemies. They just, like, keep their distance from you. The resulting videos are typical scenes from a medical practicepeople donning gloves, waiting in chairsspliced together over a heavy-metal soundtrack. And most doctors youve seen, they give off this persona as like, Im too cool. Calles: I mean, the whole deal of him being in jail this long is completely unfair. She told me that while she was a patient at the clinic, she had a front-row seat to Preventagenix getting more and more popular. (The music opens up into a technologic rainforest as synthesizers mimic birdsong.). Young would continue to prescribe drugs there for two more years. (Court records do not contain the names of Youngs alleged victims.) Young: (Just after another person laughs.) 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