Far-Eastside physician is target of prescription probe

People who work near cardiologist Elmer P. Manalo's office in Cumberland say they have long complained about the unusual hours and heavy traffic.

[sick]

This doctors office needs to be shut down,all it is is a bunch of junkies waiting in line for more drugs.

[WHAT]

This sounds like a fishing expedition conducted by Indy's finest.

[Kevin]

There are more of these guys out there. My buddy used to work at a pharmacy on the south side, and he said that a small handful of doctors prescribed the majority of their Xanax and Codeine prescriptions. They keep tabs on this stuff, and the doctors do get shut down eventually. It usually doesn't make the news though.

[f11 and be there]

I've watched this "medical practice" in Cumberland for several months now. This place has about as much in common with a legitimate doctor's office as a pile of dog dook has with a bag of diamonds.

Applicable laws and licensing organizations must be pretty toothless if it has taken this long to raid the place. And even then it's only a search warrant, not an arrest warrant.(Here's hoping the search will lead to an arrest.)

The place looks like a trailer trash refugee camp on a good day.

What "real" doctors office has the following characteristics?

-has no sign-age, no doctor's name/business name or phone number visible on the exterior. You must have to find out about this place "on the street." I didn't even know the guy's name until I saw him on WISH-TV.

-apparently has no waiting room. Dozens of people stand around outside smoking cigs and shooting the bull. And getting into fights. And wrestling each other horsey-back. And changing their oil. And making out on the tailgate of a pickup.(Not making any of this up.)

-In June, my wife and I gassed up at the station across the street at 3:30AM to get an early start on our vacation drive. The office was STILL OPEN. It's routinely open until at least 11PM.(The Star's story says it's only open two days a week. This is not correct. I haven't kept strict track, but I'm positive it's hoppin' four days a week or more.)

It was reported weeks ago that his license is expired. What competent professional fails to keep his license up to date?

Cumberland seems like a town on the brink. It could to go either way: show place or ghetto. We're now a historic district, so I have to jump through hoops to improve my property. I wouldn't mind this because it's for the greater good of the community and property values. But then a liquor store is allowed to move in even though the majority of people within a 500 foot radius signed a petition against it. The town council did NOTHING. And now for about six months, "Doctor" Manalo's moral equivalent of a crack den has flourished across the street from the police station.

[Big G 73]

This WAS across the street from the police station.The cops stumbled across this after several years of complaints.Something wrong with this picture?

[RPh]

It takes a pin drop for a pharmacist filling these prescriptions to lose his license and an act of God for the MD to lose his license. Sounds pretty fair, right?

[vOTEoUT]

f11 and be there wrote:

I've watched this "medical practice" in Cumberland for several months now. This place has about as much in common with a legitimate doctor's office as a pile of dog dook has with a bag of diamonds.
Applicable laws and licensing organizations must be pretty toothless if it has taken this long to raid the place. And even then it's only a search warrant, not an arrest warrant.(Here's hoping the search will lead to an arrest.)
The place looks like a trailer trash refugee camp on a good day.
What "real" doctors office has the following characteristics?
-has no sign-age, no doctor's name/business name or phone number visible on the exterior. You must have to find out about this place "on the street." I didn't even know the guy's name until I saw him on WISH-TV.
-apparently has no waiting room. Dozens of people stand around outside smoking cigs and shooting the bull. And getting into fights. And wrestling each other horsey-back. And changing their oil. And making out on the tailgate of a pickup.(Not making any of this up.)
-In June, my wife and I gassed up at the station across the street at 3:30AM to get an early start on our vacation drive. The office was STILL OPEN. It's routinely open until at least 11PM.(The Star's story says it's only open two days a week. This is not correct. I haven't kept strict track, but I'm positive it's hoppin' four days a week or more.)
It was reported weeks ago that his license is expired. What competent professional fails to keep his license up to date?
Cumberland seems like a town on the brink. It could to go either way: show place or ghetto. We're now a historic district, so I have to jump through hoops to improve my property. I wouldn't mind this because it's for the greater good of the community and property values. But then a liquor store is allowed to move in even though the majority of people within a 500 foot radius signed a petition against it. The town council did NOTHING. And now for about six months, "Doctor" Manalo's moral equivalent of a crack den has flourished across the street from the police station.

Vote out the town council.

[f11 and be there]

I may have sounded like I was knocking Cumberland PD in my earlier post. I'd like to say I've had nothing but good experience with them.

Halloween party out of hand in the neighborhood? Broken up 10 minutes after I called.

Car accident happened right in front of me? Response time less than two minutes.

I hadn't seen my elderly neighbor in two days and called for a welfare check. Three uniforms and two detectives on the scene almost immediately.(My neighbor returned home later and was fine.)

I actually spoke to an officer (one of the higher ranking guys, not a uniform) some weeks back about the "doctor's office." All he would say was "We're aware of the problem," which I took as code for "can't talk about an ongoing investigation." I could see frustration on his face and have no reason to doubt they were working on the situation within whatever legal framework they had available to them.

[f11 and be there]

Big G 73 wrote:

This WAS across the street from the police station.The cops stumbled across this after several years of complaints.Something wrong with this picture?

Law enforcement response to this was not perfect to be sure, but the place has only existed for months, not years. And it was not recently "stumbled upon" but has been under investigation for quite a while.

[bill]

it's about time. unfortunately it doesn't look as though any criminal charges will be filed against the prescription writer or recievers. not even so much as a no no no!

[IPSGRAD]

The star does it again. Cumberland is not the far eastside of Indianapolis.

Unless this office is on the far eastside of Cumberland, which based on my recollection it is not.

The copy editors need a compass and a map

[Fearless and Happy]

f11 and be there wrote:

I've watched this "medical practice" in Cumberland for several months now. This place has about as much in common with a legitimate doctor's office as a pile of dog dook has with a bag of diamonds.
Applicable laws and licensing organizations must be pretty toothless if it has taken this long to raid the place. And even then it's only a search warrant, not an arrest warrant.(Here's hoping the search will lead to an arrest.)
The place looks like a trailer trash refugee camp on a good day.
What "real" doctors office has the following characteristics?
-has no sign-age, no doctor's name/business name or phone number visible on the exterior. You must have to find out about this place "on the street." I didn't even know the guy's name until I saw him on WISH-TV.
-apparently has no waiting room. Dozens of people stand around outside smoking cigs and shooting the bull. And getting into fights. And wrestling each other horsey-back. And changing their oil. And making out on the tailgate of a pickup.(Not making any of this up.)
-In June, my wife and I gassed up at the station across the street at 3:30AM to get an early start on our vacation drive. The office was STILL OPEN. It's routinely open until at least 11PM.(The Star's story says it's only open two days a week. This is not correct. I haven't kept strict track, but I'm positive it's hoppin' four days a week or more.)
It was reported weeks ago that his license is expired. What competent professional fails to keep his license up to date?
Cumberland seems like a town on the brink. It could to go either way: show place or ghetto. We're now a historic district, so I have to jump through hoops to improve my property. I wouldn't mind this because it's for the greater good of the community and property values. But then a liquor store is allowed to move in even though the majority of people within a 500 foot radius signed a petition against it. The town council did NOTHING. And now for about six months, "Doctor" Manalo's moral equivalent of a crack den has flourished across the street from the police station.

State Records show his license is suspended and he was censured and could practice under supervision for awhile.
Go to Indiana.gov and search professional licensing.

[jrs]

the local police could only move as fast as the teamwork with the feds would allow and they can not say much about an ongoing investigation, you are correct there. I deal with the cumberland police on a regular basis and have to say I have not had anything but good to say.

[A friend]

I know Dr. Manalo. He is a miracle worker. He heals people. He tries to cut through red tape to make sure people get the care they need. I'm very surprised anyone would accuse him of wrong-doing, and he hasn't even been charged with anything! What happened to "innocent-til-proven-guil ty"? He hasn't even been charged with a crime, and the media have already judged him without a trial, as well as the people who read and watch TV. The reason the "investigation" hasn't gone anywhere is because he hasn't done anything wrong. I will wait until the facts are revealed before I decide if he's guilty or not.

[Cory]

Big G 73 wrote:

This WAS across the street from the police station.The cops stumbled across this after several years of complaints.Something wrong with this picture?

No, this was not "stumbled" on. This has been an issue for sometime and the CPD has been working on this since the office opened. I applaud the Cumberland PD and the fine work that they did to get to this point!

[jen]

this has been going on for longer than a year. i was a technician at a pharmacy and we stopped filling prescriptions for narcotics from this guy as he is a cardiovascular doctor and should only be prescribing things in relation to that particular field. a 6 month prescription for vicodin is and still is not acceptable. he needs to have his licence revoked and be thrown in jail.

[EAST SIDER]

IPSGRAD wrote:

The star does it again. Cumberland is not the far eastside of Indianapolis.
Unless this office is on the far eastside of Cumberland, which based on my recollection it is not.
The copy editors need a compass and a map

I don't know what Cumberland you are referring to, but the Cumberland in the artical is ON the far eastside of Indianapolis.

[f11 and be there]

vOTEoUT wrote:

<quoted text>
Vote out the town council.

"Vote all the bums out" is a tempting thought on some level. Believe me, my selections for town council this November will be given much thoughtful consideration.

Unfortunately, one challenger I am aware of has already been shown to be far less desirable or qualified than the incumbent.

[Denied]

Many pharmacists have refused to fill controlled substances from this physician due to what appears to be unethical prescribing habits. It is hard to argue against this perception when you have patients with reported neurologic, autoimmune, or idiopathic "chronic pain" driving many miles to see a CARDIOLOGIST, having never seen an actual specialist for their specific problems. It is also questionable when most of the "patients" seem to receive very similar meds at very similar doses for very different problems. I'm sure legitimate patients see this physician, but it appears a majority head to Manalo for their monthly prescriptions for street candy.

[Ash]

IPSGRAD wrote:

The star does it again. Cumberland is not the far eastside of Indianapolis.
Unless this office is on the far eastside of Cumberland, which based on my recollection it is not.
The copy editors need a compass and a map

You do realize Cumberland is within Indianapolis city limits, right? And that the doctor's office has an Indianapolis address? And that for over thirty years now Indianapolis has occupied all of Marion County?

Saying that Cumberland is not in Indianapolis is like saying Castleton isn't part of Indianapolis