A federal appeals court has rejected arguments by a former Vero Beach orthopedic surgeon sentenced to life in prison in the death of a Palm Beach County woman who overdosed on counterfeit oxycodone pills.

A three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit on Friday upheld the conviction of Johnny Clyde Benjamin Jr. on a series of charges related to producing and distributing counterfeit pills that included the substance furanyl fentanyl, a powerful synthetic opioid.