Doctors Robert P. Imbernino and Douglas Alvin Schaller Slammed by State for Serious Offenses

An Irvine anesthesiologist had his medical license revoked for being part of an illegal Internet drug sales scheme, and a Tustin addiction medicine specialist was issued a cease practice order due to convictions for driving under the influence, according to state officials.

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Records from the federal court for the Southern District of New York indicate from 2010 through November 2012, Dr. Robert P. Imbernino and other physicians, pharmacists and website operators worked together to sell drugs over the Internet to customers who did not have prescriptions nor had they been seen by the medical professionals.

A government indictment indicates Imbernino received more than $400,000 in kickbacks from website operators who had him write illegal scripts, with payments transferred through Hong Kong.

Imbernino pleaded guilty in 2013 to a count of delivering, distributing or dispensing a controlled substance by means of the Internet, and he was sentenced to two years of supervised release and ordered to immediately surrender his license to practice medicine and Drug Enforcement Agency prescription license, according to Medical Board of California records.

His license to practice medicine in California was revoked effective 5 p.m. Friday, according to an email from the state board.

Twenty-four hours before that, the cease practice order for Dr. Douglas Alvin Schaller went into effect, according to the board, which means he's essentially on suspension.

Online records indicate that Schaller is being punished for DUI convictions and probation sentences handed down in 2011 and 2012.

Schaller's biography on medical-rating sites state that he specializes in anesthesiology, internal medicine, addiction medicine and general practice. The University of Missouri-Kansas City School of Medicine graduate “is especially interested in pain management,” his bio adds.

Email: mc****@oc******.com. Twitter: @MatthewTCoker. Follow OC Weekly on Twitter @ocweekly or on Facebook!

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