Article Text
An Oakton doctor was sentenced to 13 years in prison for illegally distributing oxycodone and amphetamines, maintaining drug premises and making false statements related to health care matters.
David Allingham, 65, owned Oakton Primacy Care Center and was its only medically licensed practitioner. The urgent care center’s website promoted him as an addiction medicine family doctor trained to prevent, diagnose and treat addiction.
According to court documents, Allingham prescribed opioids and amphetamines to numerous patients without properly evaluating their individual needs. Prosecutors said the prescriptions fell outside professional practice and regulations and had no legitimate medical purpose.
From at least April 2019 through January 2024, Virginia pharmacies filled about 7,330 oxycodone prescriptions written by Allingham, totaling roughly 405,164 pills.
Patients were required to pay $300 to $550 out of pocket for office visits, typically using cash, credit cards or Venmo. A doctor’s letter cost an additional $700.
Allingham required chronic pain patients to pay for an appointment at least once every 21 days. However, many of those appointments consisted only of phone calls with employees who lacked medical training. He authorized opioid renewals without conducting physical examinations or receiving medical evidence beyond patients’ unverified accounts.
Several pharmacies investigated Allingham’s opioid prescribing and later refused to fill his controlled-substance prescriptions. After a national pharmacy chain barred its stores from filling prescriptions he wrote, Allingham told employees to move patients away from brand-name chains and toward independent “mom and pop” pharmacies. Court documents said the change was intended to avoid scrutiny and allow him to continue prescribing high-dose opioids.
Allingham generally required urine drug testing during in-office appointments but repeatedly ignored or excused failed results. Some results were withheld from patient files or inaccurately recorded.
One patient failed 40 drug tests between 2019 and 2023. Allingham’s records claimed the patient tested positive for cocaine after handling currency contaminated with cocaine residue. He continued prescribing oxycodone to the patient.
Allingham also prescribed amphetamines to chronic pain patients for weight loss, regardless of whether they were obese and contrary to regulations. During the conspiracy, he issued at least 527 such prescriptions, representing more than 13,500 pills.
Multiple patients died from drug overdoses within hours, days or weeks after receiving oxycodone prescriptions from Allingham.
Law enforcement searched Allingham’s home and medical practice in July 2023. Investigators said he then made false statements about his prescribing practices and directed at least one employee to delete records of text messages exchanged with him.