Denver Doctor Andrew Ho Pleads Guilty To Prescribing 'Holy Trinity' Of Dangerous Prescription Drugs

DENVER (CBS4) -- A Denver doctor has pleaded guilty to illegally prescribing a dangerous combination of controlled substances known as the "Holy Trinity." Andrew Mark Ho, 54, is an owner of and practices at Harvard Avenue Internal Medicine LLC, federal officials said.

"The 'Holy Trinity' is a colloquial term to describe the prescription of a combination of drugs comprised of a benzodiazepine, an opioid, and a muscle relaxant, which while highly sought out on the street, is especially dangerous because each of those medications depress the central nervous system and the ability to breathe," U.S. Attorney Jason Dunn stated.

Prosecutors say Ho prescribed a combination of controlled substances between 2014 and 2016 "outside the scope of accepted medical practices."

"Overprescribing controlled substances, especially prescribing the "Holy Trinity" of prescription drugs is dangerous, and there is no acceptable medical reason to do so," said Dunn. "In this case, it's simply flat-out drug dealing and is being treated accordingly."

Ho entered his plea Wednesday and agreed to 15 years of supervised release and relinquished his ability to prescribe controlled substances.

"By Dr. Ho relinquishing his ability to prescribe controlled substances, there will be fewer people in this state being provided highly addictive controlled substances for no legitimate medical reason, which in this case resulted in abuse and illegal distribution," Dunn stated.

Ho is expected to be sentenced in January.

(© Copyright 2019 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)