He would sometimes brag about having sex on his lunch break, sharing with his staff pictures of his conquests, three employees said. When one video was apparently manipulated by one of his detractors and posted online, Young threatened whoever might have done it. Khazan: A lot of them, unfortunately, went with it. [Khazan laughs.] Khazan: Which was exactly what she liked about him. PreventaGenix had a back door, and before long employees started noticing that some female patients would come in through it and go directly to Youngs office. Thirty minutes. And I remember texting him back, and I remember saying, Jeff, he is a grumpy, old, country man, and hes not going to be an easy patient, but something is terribly wrong. And he said, I got that covered too. So I get my husband up there. Young would call these liaisons nooners or say it was tap-that-ass Tuesday, according to court testimony. He did know exactly what to talk to him about to make him feel at ease, and he impressed that grumpy old man so much that that was his primary-care doctor and the only doctor he would see. It doesnt sound like much of a sella middle-aged man doling out medical advice in a city midway between Memphis and Nashville. Calles: I really am so thankful that he suggested that to me, because if he hadnt have, I probably wouldve never done it, because I wouldnt take anybody else seriously enough to even think about doing it. Thats okay. There is a friendliness, too, that one associates with the South. The cameraman who shot the pilot, who requested anonymity because he doesnt want to be associated with Youngs case, heard about Young through a mutual friend and visited him several times to shoot footage for what he hoped could become a reality show. Young and Phillips, both longtime musicians, reveal that theyre working on some rap songs about Youngs haters, then ponder how to do gang signs. He would chitchat with his patients, ask them about their latest tattoos. But as I talked to more patients, they started saying things that really surprised me. Be part of The Experiment. Theres actually a diagnosis called white-coat hypertension. Its when your blood pressure spikes in a doctors office because the whole experience is nerve-racking. ], Oh, you look fine to me.. The biggest blow came in 2019, when Jeff was indicted by the federal government for overprescribing opioids, often in order to get, quote, money, notoriety, and sexual favors., In a court hearing, investigators described several Facebook messages between Jeff and his patients, identified only by their initials. At the beginning of the opioid epidemic, the autonomy of doctors to prescribe opioids was almost limitless, Keith Humphreys, a Stanford University professor who researches mental-health policy, says. In 2011, the couple got in a fight while visiting Panama City Beach, Florida, and it was determined that Young did throw, or shove, Mrs. Young from the bed to the floor, the police report reads. A restaurant called the Little Rebel displayed a Confederate flag. Khazan: The videos were sarcastic and loose, intimate in their own bizarre way. A new court filing, first reported by The Tennessean last week, portrays the Rock Doc as a menacing figure at the intersection of the opioid crisis and the #MeToo movement. Jeffrey Young was one of those people. To a different patient, he wrote, Come fuck me at my office right now., It is not illegal for doctors to have sex with their patients, though its considered unethical. Will be glad to take the balance out of your ass. To another, Jeff asked, You want to come by for a checkup tomorrow? The self-proclaimed "Rock Doc" is accused of trading powerful . Young began arriving at the clinic smelling rancid, with greasy hair, and the clinics money problems mounted. Young: (Over hard-rock music.) Several others dismissed the notion that Young could be sexually coercive. I dont wear underwear. Khazan: LaRhonda Scott Deberry is a 54-year-old former teacher who lives in Memphis. She became his patient around 2016. She doesnt think Young was the one who drugged her, but she believes nevertheless that she was drugged. Trial dates have been set for "Rock Doc" Jeffery Young, his supervising physicians, and two more medical professionals recently indicted on additional drug trafficking charges. Its light and upbeat.). [Laughs.] Sometimes the two men would fight, and broken glass would litter the floor. He may have that, but hes not Hes down to earth. Similarly, Young appeared to get the benefit of the doubt from virtually everyone. Even now, I cant say that. Many people in Jackson seemed to see themselves in Young. Hey, are you paying attention? #coffeeplease #noontime #rockrageradio www.rockrageradio.com Khazan: The Rock Doc, Jeff Young, has been in jail for almost two years, awaiting trial. Nurses are consistently rated higher in honesty and ethics than all other professions that Gallup asks about, by a wide margin, the polling firm said in a January 2020 survey. So it just kind of, I guess, comforted me. 14:46. Pharmacists began to refuse to fill his prescriptions. He didnt mind saying a curse word or two.. Jeff gets his nick name "Rock Doc" from his loyal patients. Additional music by Nelson Bandela (04 HIDDEN FORCES and Auddi Sun 01 131). ), Youngs sexual desires and need to please patients allegedly soon blurred together. In March 2019, the health department received a complaint that Young had inappropriate sexual contact with patients, and sent him a letter of warning without disciplining him. Calles: Oh my gosh. He was like, No, we do Botox and stuff for people, and dah-dah-dah-dah. And that was not the case at all. [Chuckles.] In April 2019, he was indicted on drug-trafficking charges, along with five other medical providers in Jackson, two of whom were the supervising physicians Young, as a nurse practitioner, was required to have. He graduated from Union University, an evangelical Christian school, in 1995, then earned a degree from the University of Tennessee College of Nursing in 2003. He exhibited a certain tenderness as he filled syringes and sutured skin. Opioid manufacturers such as Endo, the maker of Opana, and Purdue Pharma, the maker of OxyContin, targeted high-volume providers, in particular generalists, nurse practitioners, and physician assistants, who generally had less expertise in pain management and were more receptive to marketing from sales consultants, according to a lawsuit filed by the state of Tennessee against Endo in May 2019. In an email to The Atlantic, Working said that when it came to Phillipss actions, there was no direct threat. Like many actual rock stars, he flamed out on his own extravagant lifestyle. Khazan: LeAnns story was similar to Tanyas and LaRhondas and Christis. Khazan: LaRhonda didnt know anything about all of thisthe nursing board didnt make their investigation publicbut she was following him on social media. I had had back surgery, and I really had real problems that no one wanted to listen to me about. I cant wait to start being your patient again, one woman wrote. His followers across social-media accounts numbered in the low thousandshigher than a casual users, but a trifle compared with even a C-list celebritys fan base. (Fades under.). Longoria: Olga Khazan is a staff writer at The Atlantic whos been covering the opioid epidemic for the last seven years. At least 50 women are thought to have come to the clinic to have sex with Young, some of them allegedly doing so in exchange for drugs, according to court testimony. Once his colleagues were out of the business, Young began crafting a persona based around rock music and hard living. They didnt openly harass anyone who criticized them. Naylor: I said, Go see Jeff. And she said, Id rather not. And I said, Why? And she said, Because if I go see him, hell start texting me and calling me. And I said, And wanting to go out with you? And she said, Yeah. Thats the thing. Khazan: Part of making her feel better was prescribing her opioids. Youngs story raises the question of where care crosses into harm. While Youngs antics could be a nightmare for his staff, his pool of patients increased as word about his practice spread. Khazan: Anyone online could watch him, say, biopsy someones skin while listening to hard rock. Despite some patients praise for Young, the evidence that he routinely walked far over that line remains alarming. In one scene, he and his best friend, a pharmaceutical representative named John Kevin Phillips, broadcast themselves on the video-streaming app Periscope. I had a lot of Why on earth? questions, the Atlantic reporter Olga Khazan says. Use the hashtag #TheExperimentPodcast, or write to us at theexperiment@theatlantic.com. [Laughs lightly.] Some of his patients were police officers whom he would occasionally ask for favors. Editing by Katherine Wells, Julia Longoria, and Denise Wills. Less than half answered. If a patient would text him a compliment, he would blast it all over Facebook, one former employee told me. I didnt know that. 13.6k members in the AutoNewspaper community. He has pleaded not guilty to all the charges against him. A Professional theme for architects, construction and interior designers He pleaded not guilty to the . Kevin: Jeff and I are full of antics. But they helped create the opioid crisis all the same. Khazan: And some of what she saw really weirded her out. By the end of this hearing, you will be asking what on Earth took the medical board so long, Pennebaker, the prosecutor, said in court. I need you to find this fucker, he wrote, according to court testimony later reported by The Jackson Sun. Theyre standoffish towards you. Fact-check by Michelle Ciarrocca and Jack Segelstein. Right? But one thing that I was really curious about is how you actually went from having opioids being a thing that existed to having opioids be a thing that existed in peoples medicine cabinets. Doctors, in theory, would only prescribe to people who needed the drugs and would monitor patients so they wouldnt get addicted. Naylor: Thats a really hard question for me to answer, because I believeour whole family believesthat he saved my husbands life. Khazan: Jeff and his friend Kevin would often head to Periscope to defend themselves. He soon opened a new clinic, which he called GeneXis Health. But he, uh He was true to himself; lets say that. The men each contributed $40,000 to the endeavor. Khazan: Her husband had severe dehydration and was suffering from a heat stroke. Its joined at points by a line of harmony played on a synthesizer.). Young: That was what Im going to say. Many told me that they didnt want to talk on the record. The next morning, the office manager, Kristie Gutgsell, would clean up after them. When PreventaGenix closed, Young was alleged to have failed to pay part of the unemployment insurance, federal tax withholdings, and final payroll for the clinic, according to a lawsuit filed by his former partners, Reitz and Patel. In 2012, Young was working at a cardiology practice in Jackson when, with a consultant named Rich Reitz and cardiologist named Dharmesh Patel, he set up a side business giving talks to doctors about treating heart attacks and strokes. We put out calls and emails to dozens of Jeff Youngs patients. You ready? Khazan: But the pilot also showed the other side of Jeff. Ultimately, what hastened Youngs downfall is that some of the female patients asking him for drugs were undercover officers. Young cared for all kinds of people, some of whom didnt have money or health insurance. For the cosmetically minded, he hosted alcohol-fueled Botox parties. ), (What sounds like road noise plays in the background of a Periscope clip. JACKSON, Tenn. The end is nowhere close for three medical professionals charged in a federal opioid crackdown earlier this year. Calles: I mean, you have killersmurderers, I meanthat have not been in jail this long. Everybody pay fucking attention worldwide because Im about to save this motherfuckers lifelive on Periscope broadcast! The week that followed Martin Luther King Jr.s assassination was revolutionaryso why was it nearly forgotten? Thats the only way you can describe it. At first, Young seemed to Reitz like an affable, outgoing dad who loved rock and practiced medicine. The waiting room often overflowed with patients. Hed wandered off into the woods. A few months into their new venture, Reitz and Young were supposed to meet to discuss the running of the clinic. But it seemed like she wasnt the only one getting pain meds from the Rock Doc. Khazan: Even LaRhonda, the retired teacher who had soured on Jeff, told me that Jeff was the rare provider who would take her pain seriously. (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.) Hed wear Halloween masks and make off-color jokes. Yeah. I am a, uh, nurse practitioner. Why would you go to this doctor? The department suggested that he surrender his license in order to resolve the matter quickly, but according to a report from The Tennessean and The Jackson Sun, a defiant Young rejected that offer. 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.*. Were small enough where we still talk, Jerry Gist, who was the mayor at the time, told me. (Later, Phillips pleaded guilty to threatening a Drug Enforcement Administration agent who was investigating Young. I mean, you could just kind of tell you could trust him. We got a very, uh, important (Fades under.). Khazan: Jeff had been good to Tanya in the clinic, which was an experience that she didnt usually have with doctors. A woman I spoke with who has worked for seven doctors offices in the area estimates that about three-quarters of medical visits there result in an opioid prescription. Young was indicted on drug-trafficking charges in April 2019. 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