DOCTOR IN OXYCONTIN CASE DENIES IMPLICATION

Federal Agents Pore Over Medical Records

Thursday Morning, Cecil Knox Was Back To Treating Patients At Southwest
Virginia Physical Medicine And Rehabilitation

A physician who is the Roanoke Valley's leading prescriber of OxyContin and
the subject of a criminal investigation said through an attorney Thursday
that he has done nothing wrong.

Cecil Knox "emphatically denies any wrongdoing by himself or his staff,"
Roanoke attorney Debbie Caldwell-Bono said.

On Wednesday, federal agents spent more than six hours collecting patient
files and medical records from Knox's office on Second Street Southwest. A
search warrant affidavit stated that authorities suspect Knox illegally
provided OxyContin and other prescription drugs to drug dealers and
addicts, including two people who later died from overdoses.

Knox has not been charged, and authorities will likely spend weeks poring
over thousands of pages of medical records before deciding what to do next.

"We believe the documents will show he is acting within the requirements
and guidelines of his profession," said Caldwell-Bono, who said she was
speaking for Knox but does not represent him because no charges have been
filed.

Thursday morning, Knox was back to treating patients at Southwest Virginia
Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, a practice that provides physical
therapy and pain management to people who suffer from chronic pain.

"He takes his Hippocratic oath very seriously," Caldwell-Bono said. "He may
be a leading prescriber of this type of pain medication. But at the same
time, you have to realize that he is a leading care-giver of chronic pain
sufferers in this area."

OxyContin abuse became a problem in far Southwest Virginia about two years
ago. Police say the potent painkiller has caused fatal overdoses and
rampant crime by addicts who crush the pills and snort or inject the power
for a heroin-like high.

The issue has polarized the medical community. Some doctors feel the drug,
a derivative of opium, should only be used for patients with severe pain or
terminal illness. Others believe OxyContin should be used more often as
part of a movement to treat pain more responsibly after years of making
patients suffer needlessly.

Caldwell-Bono said Knox shares the government's concern about OxyContin
abuse and has taken steps to prevent it. For example, when patients tell
him their drugs were stolen, and they need a replacement prescription, he
requires them to file a police report first.

However, federal authorities alleged in the affidavit that police have
warned Knox in the past that his prescriptions were being misused. A
detective with the Pulaski County Sheriff's Office received no response
after informing Knox that one of his patients had been charged with
distributing OxyContin, the affidavit states.

Knox is the latest physician to come under government scrutiny. Four
Southwest Virginia doctors have been convicted of illegally dispensing
prescription drugs, and a Bland County doctor faces a trial next week in
Abingdon.