SPOKANE, WA — A Spokane physician has agreed to pay $120,000 and surrender his federal prescribing privileges for three years to resolve federal allegations that he issued hundreds of controlled-substance prescriptions without a legitimate medical purpose, according to documents released Wednesday.
Federal investigators said Dr. Duncan Lahtinen wrote more than 1,400 prescriptions for opioids, benzodiazepines, sedatives, and carisoprodol between 2017 and 2025. Thirteen patients were identified in the investigation, with many prescriptions issued in overlapping or combined regimens that federal authorities say raised multiple red flags for substance misuse.
According to the settlement agreement, Dr. Lahtinen admitted the factual details outlining his prescribing patterns but did not admit liability. The United States alleged that many prescriptions were issued outside the usual course of professional practice in violation of the Controlled Substances Act and that some resulted in false claims submitted to Medicare and Medicaid…