Dr. Bauer's bond prevents him from practicing

SANDUSKY — A doctor accused of overprescribing painkillers is barred from seeing patients while released on bond.Dr. William "Bill" Bauer, 82, of Port Clinton, is charged with 200 counts of distribution of controlled substance and 14 counts of healthcare fraud.He appeared Wednesday in the U.S. District Court in Toledo before Magistrate Judge James Knepp. Bauer pleaded not guilty to the charges and made his $1 million bail by using property as collateral and posting $500,000 cash.As a condition of his release, Judge Knepp ordered he wouldn't be allowed to practice medicine and/or prescribe controlled substances while his court case is ongoing.The U.S. Attorney for Northern Ohio, Justin Herdman, announced the charges against Bauer on Wednesday following an investigation by the FBI, DEA, the Department of Health and Human Services — Inspector General's Office and the Ohio Attorney General's Office.They accused Bauer of prescribing large amounts of painkillers without a medical reason and pursuing profits over his patients' well-being. The indictment accused him of not discussing alternative pain management methods with patients.One of his patients, who wished to remain anonymous, said they discussed thousands of different treatment options, but they all included opioids.But Bauer, a neurologist with a practice in Sandusky and Bellevue, has contended he's an advocate for chronic pain patients who are being denied care by the government's crackdown on opioid prescriptions.Several of his patients appeared on the Register's public affairs show "Between the Lines" and said he helped them. They also spoke about how pharmacies have denied filling his prescriptions.Multiple people, however, left comments on the Register's Facebook page following the article about the charges which claimed Bauer led them or a loved one to addiction.Bauer appeared at his arraignment with Sandusky attorney Ed Rhode, but on Thursday Bauer retained Cleveland-based attorney John Gibbons to represent him.Gibbons is a former U.S. attorney who specializes in criminal and federal cases. He's also representing Dr. Gregory Gerber who is in the middle of a civil case with the U.S. Department of Justice on his prescribing habits following a raid of his Sandusky office last year.Reach reporter Michael Harrington at michaelharrington@sanduskyregister.com, follow the Register at Facebook.com/SanduskyRegisterDr. Bill Bauer describes the trouble he's having with corporate pharmacies during "Between the Lines" on Monday, May 6, 2019.