Trial for doctor in alleged narcotics scheme to be delayed

By Dan Abendschein, Staff Writer
Posted: 04/03/2009 05:13:54 PM PDT


PASADENA - A trial scheduled to begin next week for a Duarte doctor and his assistant accused by federal authorities of narcotics trafficking will be postponed, officials said Friday.

Prosecutors and attorneys for both defendants agreed to the delay to give both sides more time to prepare, defense attorney Randy Driggs said.

A federal grand jury last month indicted Dr. Daniel Healy of Arcadia and his assistant, Alvaro Rosales of Chino Hills, on 16 drug-related charges. Rosales was additionally indicted on one drug conspiracy charge.

Authorities accused Healy of running a cash-only medical practices in Duarte and Rancho Cucamonga that illegally provided massive amounts of prescription drugs to people he knew and trusted, including his sons and their friends.

The narcotics later were often sold on the street, according to the indictment.

Drug databases maintained by the federal government show that Healy dispensed more than 1 million pills of hydrocodone tablets last year, more than any other doctor in the nation. Hydrocodone is more commonly known as Vicodin.

Investigators calculated that, based on the hours of operation at Healy's clinic, he dispensed an average of 521 hydrocodone pills an hour.

Healy often asked patients if they preferred a "family size" or "party size" bottle of narcotics, according to a federal criminal complaint.

Rosales also prescribed and distributed pills, even though he was not
a doctor, court records allege. He has a degree in medicine from a university in Guadalajara, Mexico, according to authorities, but is not licensed to practice in the United States.

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