Toms River Doctor Temporarily Barred From Prescribing Pain Meds

TOMS RIVER, NJ — A Toms River doctor who specializes in pain management has been temporarily suspended from prescribing medication after an investigation that showed he had prescribed opioids to patients who told him they had sold pills.

Dr. Bruce M. Coplin, a physiatrist whose office is on Hospital Drive, has been suspended from prescribing any controlled dangerous substances as of Aug. 23 by the state Board of Medical Examiners, according to the disciplinary order on file with the state.

According to the order, Coplin is accused of writing prescriptions for opioid painkillers, including Percocet and OxyContin, without examining the patients to determine whether their symptoms needed that level of pain management.

"The medical records do not reflect that he developed long-term treatment plans ... nor do they reflect his having made any meaningful efforts to attempt alternative therapies and/or to taper the amounts of opioids that he prescribed for his patients," the board wrote.

Two of the patients cited in the order covertly videotaped their patient visits with Coplin; one was an informant, and the other was an undercover investigator, according to the document. The videos allegedly show Coplin "blithely ignored" statements by both the undercover investigator and the informant that they had diverted prescription pain medication. In some cases, medications were prescribed solely based on the patient's request, the order alleges.

Six other patients are mentioned in the order, which alleges Coplin ignored "red flags" that indicated the opioids were being diverted, including prescriptions repeatedly being refilled early and warnings from insurance companies about the health risks of quantities and combinations of drugs he was prescribing.

A husband and wife allegedly were prescribed the exact same opioids with similar diagnoses and evidence they were diverting pills — Coplin later terminated the couple as patients, the order says — and in another instance prescribed Percocet, OxyContin and fentanyl to the same patient, despite the serious risks posed by the medications.

In the order, it said Coplin admitted to signing prescription blanks that he then left with his nurses while he was on vacation so they could provide prescription refills to patients, but stopped doing that after he came under investigation.

"While we recognize that Dr. Coplin concedes that the practice was a 'mistake' and that he has discontinued that practice, we find the dereliction of judgment evident in his ever having condoned or facilitated this conduct to be manifest," the board wrote.

The U.S. News biographyon Coplin says "Physiatrists are physicians who specialize in helping patients with disabilities. Their focus is rehabilitation, restoration of function and a return to a high quality of life. Patients may have muscle, bone, soft tissue or nervous system injuries."

Coplin's prescription permissions will be suspended until a hearing before an administrative law judge, the board wrote.

Photo by Karen Wall, Patch staff