28 April 2017 :

Medical Director in Arkansas Could Lose License for Acquiring Execution Drug. A lawsuit filed by pharmaceutical distributor McKesson claims the Arkansas Department of Corrections "leveraged" its medical director's medical license to purchase vecuronium bromide, a muscle relaxant used in lethal injection. While physicians have been active in executions as long as the United States has employed capital punishment, the use of a medical director's license to acquire the drug appears to be unprecedented. The identity of this person has not been made public because sweeping state secrecy laws hide the identities of those involved in executions, including employees of the Arkansas Department of Corrections (ADC). Typically, if physicians participate, they don't work for the state and could be any licensed medical practitioner. Now that McKesson has revealed the role of the ADC's medical director, the Arkansas Medical Board, whose regulations prohibit the prescription and administration of drugs for anything other than "a legitimate medical purpose," could take action. "It is something the medical board is keeping an eye on. We’re evaluating the circumstances to decide what comes next," said Kevin O'Dwyer, an attorney representing the medical board, which regulates the practice of medicine in the state. When asked about the possible ramifications for ADC's medical director, O'Dwyer said punishment could include license revocation. The identity of ADC's medical director might be known to the board, said Dr. Joel Zivot, an expert in bioethics who teaches surgery and anesthesiology at Emory University. "I don't think anyone is really clear" about the limits of secrecy laws, he said, which are "broadly encompassing."