Prescribing Capitol Physician Also Treated Sen. East : Rehnquist ’81 Drug Dependency Detailed

Dr. Freeman H. Cary, the Capitol physician who recently retired after questions were raised about his treatment of the late Republican Sen. John P. East of North Carolina, prescribed the drug for Supreme Court Justice William H. Rehnquist that led to his 1981 problems with drug dependency, according to informed sources.

Cary prescribed the powerful hypnotic Placidyl over a nine-year period in doses that exceeded the recommended limits, the sources said. Placidyl is recommended for use for no more than two weeks at a time, according to pharmacologists.

Cary, 59, who saw Rehnquist in the office of the attending physician on the first floor of the Capitol, retired three weeks ago at the suggestion of Republican senators, a Senate source said. The senators were concerned about Cary’s role in Rehnquist’s and East’s medical care, according to a Senate source.

‘Failed to Diagnose’

East committed suicide in June, saying in a note that Cary “failed to diagnose my hypothyroidism,” according to five persons who read the note.

Cary prescribed Placidyl for Rehnquist from 1972 through 1981 to help Rehnquist sleep while he was suffering from chronic and severe back pain, according to sources familiar with Rehnquist’s medical records. Rehnquist, now awaiting Senate confirmation as chief justice, underwent surgery for a “slipped disk” in 1971.

Rehnquist’s dependency on Placidyl became public in December, 1981, when he was weaned off the drug during a 10-day stay at George Washington University Hospital. Lawyers and reporters had noticed earlier that while speaking from the bench Rehnquist’s words were slurred, a possible symptom of drug dependency, according to physicians.

‘Distorted’ Perceptions

While Rehnquist was withdrawing from the drug at the hospital, he experienced “disturbances in mental clarity” and “distorted” perceptions of reality, a hospital spokesman said at the time.

Until now it was not publicly known that Cary, a Capitol physician since 1972, had prescribed the drug for Rehnquist or that Rehnquist had taken the drug over a period of at least nine years. It is unclear whether Cary was the first or only physician who prescribed Placidyl for Rehnquist, and whether Rehnquist alternated periods of not taking the drug with periods of taking it.

The usual adult dose of Placidyl is 500 milligrams, taken orally at bedtime, according to Physicians’ Desk Reference and medical experts familiar with the drug. Originally, in 1972, Rehnquist was prescribed 200 milligrams daily, according to one Senate source, but he was prescribed 1,500 milligrams a day during 1981.

Reportedly Took It Daily

Sources familiar with Rehnquist’s medical records refused to divulge the length of time Rehnquist took the drug continuously during the nine years, although one senator said Rehnquist took it on a daily basis during 1981.

Members of the Senate Judiciary Committee have agreed not to question Rehnquist about his health during the confirmation process. But that agreement is subject to change once the committee has reviewed an evaluation of Rehnquist’s health by an independent physician.

Cary, a cardiologist, joined the Office of the Attending Physician in 1972 and became head of the office in 1973. The office, established in 1928, treats members of Congress, their families, staffs, pages and Capitol police, and provides emergency treatment for tourists. Supreme Court justices also are entitled to free medical care at the office.