Two Doctors Under Investigation in Heath Ledger Death

Two doctors are being investigated in regards to their role in the accidental overdose of Heath Ledger by the DEA.  “We are investigating doctors in Los Angeles and Texas with regard to Ledger’s prescriptions,” the source tells PEOPLE.  However, the source did not say whether any wrongdoing is involved, saying, “We don’t know yet. The agents were there this week, and we are waiting to hear from them.”

The doctors in question are thought to have supplied Ledger with Oxycontin and Vicodin, law enforcement sources tell New York's Daily News. At issue is whether or not the powerful painkiller were prescribed legally. The subpoenaing of Ledger's autopsy results by the Drug Enforcement Administration was reported shortly after the findings of the report were announced. On Feb. 6, it was said that the DEA would look into the source of the actor's prescriptions.

At issue in the investigation, in addition to whether the medications were legally prescribed, is whether any "doctor shopping" took place to obtain the pills—i.e., whether the patient went to several doctors in an effort to score more prescriptions than one single doctor would dispense.

source,   source

Comments

[DianaCLT]

Kudos to the DEA for not letting this slide. I'm sure all of us have been to doctors who prescribed something without first checking to see what other prescriptions we might be taking. For that matter - the pharmacy should also be looked into. They're supposed to keep records on all medications a person is taking, and let the person know if there is any risk of drug interaction. I hope some good is able to come out of this tragedy.

[jodifur]

well, it looks like the Doctors have been cleared-

http://www.people.com/people/article/0,,20181179,00.html

And Diane-I think pharmacists only check what you have filled there. If he had a bunch of different prescriptions filled at different pharmacies they wouldn't find it.