A federal grand jury brought a 14-count indictment against a physician, Edmund Peter Kemprud M.D. charging him with prescribing opioids to patients outside the usual course of professional practice and not for legitimate medical purpose, U.S. Attorney McGregor W. Scott announced.
According to court documents, Kemprud was a physician licensed to practice medicine in California and maintained a medical practice in Dublin and Tracy.
Kemprud is a 1973 graduate of the University of California San Francisco School of Medicine. Medical Board records do not reflect any prior disciplinary matters against him.
Prosecutors say that on 14 occasions between Sept. 6, 2018 and March 13, 2019, Kemprud allegedly prescribed highly addictive, commonly abused prescription drugs, including Hydrocodone, Alprazolam, and Oxycodone – outside the usual course of professional practice and not for legitimate medical purpose.
After Kemprud was arrested he pleaded not guilty at his arraignment. He is due back in court on Jan. 30. If convicted, he faces a maximum statutory penalty of 20 years in prison.
This case is the product of an investigation by the California Department of Justice, Bureau of Medi-Cal Fraud and Elder Abuse Drug Diversion Team, the Drug Enforcement Administration, and the Office of Inspector General for the United States Department of Health and Human Services. Assistant U.S. Attorney Vincenza Rabenn is prosecuting the case.