[2] Gabasync was marketed by Hythiam, Inc. which is owned by Terren Peizer, a former junk bond salesman who has since been indicted for securities fraud relative to another company.
"[7] In 2004 Terren Peizer, a former junk bond salesman, founded Hythiam Inc., a tiny pharmaceutical company, from which in 2006 when he was majority shareholder he received $1.3 million in compensation.
[20] Preliminary evidence that a regimen combining hydroxyzine, flumazenil, and gabapentin (the active pharmacological components of Gabasync) can help decrease methamphetamine cravings and use was first published in October 2007 following a relatively small, open-label trial by Dr. Harold C. Urschel.
[23][24] Karen Freeman-Wilson, who had been promoting the Gabasync trial as the CEO of National Association of Drug Court Professionals, later joined the Board of Directors at Hythiam.
[25] Another trial in Fulton County, Georgia, ended early because it was not deemed effective; one report mentioned physician misconduct, but court officials would not comment about the issue.
However, it was subsequently revealed that county executive John Ladenburg, state legislator Dennis Flannigan, and officials at the treatment center had bought Hythiam stock.
[32] The news from Pierce County, along with a 60 Minutes investigation of Gabasync that aired in December, battered Hythiam's stock, as it fell in value nearly two-thirds by the end of the year.
[33] Also in 2007, Jerry Madden, chair of the Texas House Corrections Committee, secured $2 million of funding over two years in the state budget for Gabasync treatment programs.
In support of the budget request he cited a 20-person pilot paid for by Hythiam in Collin County, where the local judge, Charles Sandoval, reported a "spectacular" success rate (even though, when asked, stated that he hadn't kept any records).
[16] Despite a ban on marketing of off-label drug use, Hythiam started a national advertising campaign in 2006, utilizing billboards, radio spots, as well as Internet ads and paid search results.
[38][39] Ads with other dead celebrities were planned (according to Hythiam's CEO, Terren Peizer, who has since been indicted for securities fraud relative to another company), but it seems none were actually published.