Diversion Case Studies

Houston Cash-Only Pharmacy Owner and Three Pharmacists Sentenced for Pill Mill Scheme

Houston, Texas

The owner and three staff pharmacists of a cash-only Houston pharmacy were sentenced for a multi-year conspiracy to unlawfully distribute more than half a million hydrocodone and oxycodone pills. The pharmacy owner, who was also pharmacist-in-charge, dispensed controlled substances to individuals sent by drug traffickers to pose as patients, using prescriptions that were often fraudulent and issued in the names of physicians whose identities had been stolen; the traffickers funded the pill purchases and resold the drugs on the street. The pharmacy continued operating despite repeated warnings from the Texas State Board of Pharmacy, the Texas Department of Public Safety, and the DEA. The owner was sentenced to 12 years in prison and ordered to forfeit $2.6 million, while the three co-conspirator pharmacists received sentences ranging from 20 months to 6 years along with individual forfeiture orders.

West Virginia Veterinarian Ordered to Pay $956,709 Over Unaccounted-For Opioids

Winfield, West Virginia

A Putnam County, West Virginia veterinarian and DEA registrant was hit with a $956,709 default judgment after federal investigators found she could not account for thousands of dosage units of oxycodone and hydrocodone/acetaminophen ordered for her practice. Between 2018 and 2023 she ordered far more hydrocodone/acetaminophen than any other individual customer of her supplier, and her oxycodone orders accounted for 74 percent of all oxycodone sold by that supplier between January 2021 and January 2023. When DEA investigators executed an administrative inspection warrant at her registered address, they found controlled substances unsecured throughout the property, no dispensing or inventory records, and at least 6,593 dosage units unaccounted for; she later produced records of purported pre-euthanasia dispensing to animals that investigators believe were largely fabricated, and pet owners interviewed did not recall her administering the medications. She voluntarily surrendered her DEA registration, and a federal judge assessed the maximum civil penalties.

Nurse Anesthetist Sentenced for Diverting Fentanyl from ~50 Patients

Dubuque, Iowa

Ian Lindsey, a certified registered nurse anesthetist, diverted fentanyl from nearly 50 patients at a Dubuque, Iowa hospital and had earlier diverted drugs as well, prosecutors said, falsely charting that he had administered fentanyl he had actually taken. He was sentenced to three months in prison.

Trenton Pharmacy Owner Convicted of Diverting Millions of Oxycodone Pills

Trenton, New Jersey

A pharmacist who co-owned and served as pharmacist-in-charge of Healthcare Pharmacy in Trenton, New Jersey was convicted by a federal jury of conspiracy to unlawfully distribute Schedule II controlled substances and maintaining a drug-involved premises. Between 2014 and 2017 she and employees acting at her direction filled fraudulent prescriptions outside the usual course of professional practice, distributing millions of oxycodone dosage units, including more than 800,000 pills in 2014 alone, much of it diverted to street-level drug dealers. She evaded state and federal reporting requirements by manipulating the pharmacy's records, and a DEA audit found more than 64,000 oxycodone pills diverted between April 2015 and August 2017. The DEA suspended the pharmacy's registration in 2017, and she was convicted following a two-week trial in U.S. District Court.

Osage Beach Nurse Anesthetist Diverted Fentanyl from Hospital Operating Rooms

Osage Beach, Missouri

A certified registered nurse anesthetist at Lake Regional Hospital in Osage Beach, Missouri, pleaded guilty to fraudulently obtaining fentanyl and hydromorphone from the hospital's automated dispensing cabinets for his own use. He scanned drugs to generate labels he then affixed to syringes filled with saline, concealing the swap, and falsified patient charts so the recorded doses would reconcile with what he actually gave patients. He also routinely withdrew two vials of fentanyl for procedures requiring only one, diverting the second vial. A pharmacy technician discovered mislabeled syringes during a routine cabinet restock, prompting a review of surveillance footage that documented months of near-daily diversion. He pleaded guilty to one count of obtaining a controlled substance by misrepresentation and faces up to four years in federal prison.

Travel Nurse Diverted Hydromorphone Using Patients' Health Information

Beckley, West Virginia

A travel nurse who worked at Raleigh General Hospital in Beckley, West Virginia, pleaded guilty to unlawfully accessing patients' protected health information to divert hydromorphone for her own use. Using her personal biometric login, she would begin a checkout of hydromorphone for a patient, siphon off a portion of the vial's contents once the drawer opened, dilute the remainder to disguise the missing volume, reseal the vial, and cancel the transaction so it appeared nothing had been dispensed. She carried out the scheme repeatedly over roughly five months of employment at the hospital. She pleaded guilty to obtaining a controlled substance by fraud and wrongful disclosure of individually identifiable health information, with sentencing set for April 2025.

Yale New Haven Hospital Nurse Tampered with Lorazepam Vials

New Haven, Connecticut

A registered nurse at Yale New Haven Hospital pleaded guilty to tampering with and stealing vials of lorazepam from the hospital's secure medication storage. He removed a portion of the lorazepam solution from vials intended for patients, replaced it with an inert solution, and returned the tampered vials to secure storage where they remained available for dispensing to patients; he also kept at least one vial outright. He pleaded guilty to tampering with a consumer product and to acquiring a controlled substance by fraud, and his nursing license was suspended pending sentencing, scheduled for March 2025.

Michigan Registered Nurse Fined and Probated Over Alpena Drug Diversion

Alpena, Michigan

A Michigan registered nurse in Alpena was fined and placed on probation after the state licensing bureau's disciplinary action report cited drug diversion, incompetence, and lack of good moral character as the basis for action.

Michigan Registered Nurse Fined and Probated Over Allendale Drug Diversion

Allendale, Michigan

A Michigan registered nurse in Allendale was fined and placed on probation after the state licensing bureau's disciplinary action report cited drug diversion, incompetence, lack of good moral character, and mental/physical inability to practice as the basis for action.

Physician diverted Demerol from patients for personal use

Dallas, TX

The Texas Medical Board found that a licensed physician diverted Demerol from patients for himself during December 2022 and tested positive for Demerol in February 2023. While under peer investigation for the disappearance of the Demerol, the physician resigned. The physician entered an Agreed Order of Voluntary Surrender, surrendering the Texas medical license in lieu of further disciplinary proceedings.

California pharmacist sentenced to more than seven years for dispensing over 450,000 opioid pills on fraudulent prescriptions

A Madera, California pharmacist was sentenced to more than seven years in federal prison for illegally trafficking opioid pills through his own pharmacy. According to court records, from December 2014 through November 2018 he dispensed more than 450,000 oxycodone and hydrocodone pills based on fraudulent prescriptions delivered by co-conspirators. Prosecutors said he demanded cash payments and raised his prices over time. The sentence was announced by the DEA on November 25, 2024.

Mid-Valley Hospital Pays $15,000 Penalty Over Nurse's Hydromorphone Theft

Omak, Washington

Mid-Valley Hospital and Clinic in Omak, Washington, agreed to pay a $15,000 civil penalty and implement corrective controlled-substances procedures after admitting a nurse stole doses of hydromorphone for nearly two years. The nurse kept leftover medication after administering patient doses instead of properly wasting it, and used overrides in the hospital's automated medication dispensing system to withdraw additional doses. Pharmacy technicians printed override reports for review, but the pharmacy director routinely filed them away without reviewing them, allowing the diversion to continue undetected. The nurse separately entered agreements with the Washington Department of Health and the U.S. Attorney's Office restricting her access to controlled substances and barring her from seeking DEA registration before November 2025.

Vermont revokes compact-licensed physician after Kentucky revocation tied to federal controlled-substance indictment

A physician who obtained a Vermont license through the Interstate Medical Licensure Compact in March 2020 was indicted federally on charges including conspiracy to distribute and dispense controlled substances under prescriptions not issued for a legitimate medical purpose, along with health care fraud and wire fraud conspiracy counts. The Kentucky medical board revoked her license in January 2024 after adopting a hearing officer's findings. On November 6, 2024 the Vermont Board of Medical Practice deemed the Kentucky action conclusive and revoked her Vermont license, ordering that any future reinstatement be contingent on a permanent ban on prescribing or dispensing controlled substances.

Macomb County Physician and Pharmacy Owner Pay $700,948 Over Opioid Prescribing and Filling Scheme

Clinton Township, Michigan

A Clinton Township, Michigan physician, his practice entity, and the owner of an on-site pharmacy agreed to pay a total of $700,948.42 to resolve False Claims Act allegations tied to controlled-substance prescribing. Dr. Stephen Swetech prescribed medically unnecessary opioid and ADHD medications, and pharmacy owner Yasser Maisari's Heartland Drugs, located in the same office complex, filled those prescriptions. The settlement also resolved separate allegations that Dr. Swetech received above-market rent from a laboratory as an inducement to refer patients for testing. As part of the resolution, Dr. Swetech agreed to rescind his DEA registration and never again prescribe, administer, or dispense controlled substances.

Pharmacist admitted to taking controlled substances without authorization from the pharmacy for personal use

A pharmacist admitted to taking controlled substances without authorization from the pharmacy for personal use on two counts. The licensee was also charged with felony theft of a controlled substance, which was deferred. The Board imposed a 120-day suspension and five years of rehabilitation probation.

Former Kalispell assisted living employee admitted diverting pain medication

A former employee of a Kalispell assisted living facility admitted in federal court to diverting pain medication, according to a U.S. Attorney's Office release published in November 2024. The Drug Enforcement Administration conducted the investigation. The available excerpt does not state the specific drug, the charge, how the diversion was discovered or the sentence.

Louisiana Pharmacy Technician Suspended for Diverting Controlled Substances

Louisiana

The Louisiana Board of Pharmacy suspended pharmacy technician Heather Marie Ward's credential for an indefinite period after finding she diverted controlled substances from her employer pharmacy. The Board, at its November 2024 meeting, assessed a $5,000 fine plus hearing, administrative, and investigative costs, and conditioned any future application on meeting requirements set out in the hearing order.

Louisiana Pharmacy Technician Suspended in Second Diversion Case Same Term

Louisiana

The Louisiana Board of Pharmacy suspended pharmacy technician Kaja Lee'ann Joseph's credential for an indefinite period after finding she diverted controlled substances from her employer pharmacy. The Board, at its November 2024 meeting, assessed a $1,000 fine plus hearing, administrative, and investigative costs, and conditioned any future application on meeting requirements set out in the hearing order.

Berlin pain practice, physician and physician assistant settled claims over prescribing after inconsistent drug tests

A physician, a physician assistant, and their Berlin pain management practice entered into a civil settlement with the federal government and paid a total of $300,000 to resolve Controlled Substances Act allegations. The government alleged that between March 2021 and February 2023 the two providers issued 43 prescriptions for oxycodone and/or fentanyl to six patients after each patient had a urine drug test result inconsistent with the prescribed medication, a potential sign of diversion or abuse. Both providers voluntarily surrendered their DEA registrations in March 2023 and agreed not to reapply for five years. The settlement is not a finding of liability.

Concord Hospital Nurse Diverted Fentanyl from ICU Patient's IV Line

Concord, New Hampshire

A nurse at Concord Hospital pleaded guilty to diverting fentanyl from an intravenous bag connected to an intensive care unit patient who was not under her assigned care. She removed a quantity of fentanyl from the IV line and replaced it with saline. She pleaded guilty to one count of tampering with consumer products and faces up to 10 years in prison at a sentencing hearing scheduled for January 2025. Prosecutors cited the case as part of a broader pattern of diversion enforcement against New Hampshire medical professionals and facilities.

WakeMed nurse charged with stealing fentanyl from IV bag

Raleigh, NC

A nurse at WakeMed in Raleigh, N.C., was charged after police alleged the nurse stole fentanyl from the hospital. Court records allege the nurse had job access and stole 2,500 mL of fentanyl from an IV bag on Oct. 19. WakeMed police arrested the nurse on Oct. 30, and the nurse faces two felony charges: embezzling/diverting a controlled substance by registrant/employee and obtaining possession of a controlled substance by fraud/forgery. A hospital spokesperson said the nurse is no longer employed, and the nurse is out on bond with a next court date scheduled for Nov. 19.

Pharmacy assistant charged after allegedly attempting to deliver a controlled substance against pharmacy policy

Snohomish County, Washington

A pharmacy assistant was allegedly terminated from a pharmacy job for attempting to deliver a controlled substance in violation of pharmacy policy. The Washington Pharmacy Quality Assurance Commission charged the individual with unprofessional conduct. The individual has not responded to the department's investigation into the allegations.

Jackson, Kentucky Clinic Physician Pays $450,000 Over Invalid Prescriptions and Lab Kickbacks

Jackson, Kentucky

Dr. Pablo Merced, who owned St. John Neumann's Extended Hours Clinic in Jackson, Kentucky, and his wife and office manager Theresa Merced agreed to pay $450,000 to resolve civil allegations that Dr. Merced violated the Controlled Substances Act and that both defrauded federal health care programs through kickbacks. Investigators alleged Dr. Merced pre-signed 94 blank controlled-substance prescriptions and allowed unauthorized staff to complete and issue them to patients he had not evaluated, including while he was out of the country. The couple separately allegedly solicited cash kickbacks from a laboratory sales representative in exchange for referring patient lab tests, generating more than $9 million in Medicare, Medicaid, and TRICARE billings. Dr. Merced agreed to a 15-year voluntary exclusion from federal health care programs and surrendered his DEA registration.

25 Charged in Puerto Rico Retail Pharmacy Prescription Drug Diversion Ring

Bayamón, Aibonito, and Canóvanas, Puerto Rico

A federal grand jury in Puerto Rico indicted 25 individuals on September 19, 2024 — including pharmacy owners, a pharmacist, and a pharmacy technician tied to Farmacia Monte Verde, Farmacia Santa Olaya, Farmacia Unity, and Farmacia San Antonio — for buying and reselling misbranded and diverted prescription drugs through their retail pharmacies. The drugs arrived in unlabeled resealable bags with no lot numbers or expiration dates, and pharmacy defendants billed health plans as though the diverted product were authentic.

Dedham Rehabilitation Center Nurse Tampered with Oxycodone Syringes

Dedham, Massachusetts

A registered nurse at a Dedham, Massachusetts, rehabilitation center providing long-term chronic and post-acute care was sentenced to three years of probation for tampering with patients' liquid oxycodone. During shifts between February and May 2020, she removed oxycodone from syringes intended for patients, consumed it herself, and refilled the syringes with water or saline to avoid detection before returning them to medication carts where they could have been administered to patients. She pleaded guilty in January 2024 to one count of tampering with a consumer product and was sentenced roughly eight months later.

VA Nurse Diverted Narcotics from Dying Veterans at West Haven VA

West Haven, Connecticut

Tara Severino, an RN at the West Haven VA Medical Center, diverted narcotics from sick and dying veterans in the ICU between January and July 2023, in one case keeping part of a patient's dose for herself. She falsified disposal records and was sentenced to two years of probation with home confinement.

Savannah-Area Weight-Loss Clinic Physician Pays $100,000 Over Controlled-Substance Recordkeeping Failures

Savannah, Georgia

Dr. Donald Lyle Gates, who operates Scale Solutions weight-loss clinics in the Savannah, Georgia area, agreed to pay a $100,000 civil penalty to resolve allegations that he violated the Controlled Substances Act's recordkeeping requirements. A DEA inspection found that Gates's offices lacked complete and accurate records of the controlled substances he was responsible for, including inventories and documentation of receipt, distribution, and dispensing of the weight-loss drugs phentermine and phendimetrazine. Investigators also alleged Gates repeatedly removed controlled substances from his DEA-registered office locations and stored them at his home. Gates agreed to a two-year term of increased DEA oversight while retaining his registrations to dispense controlled substances.

Hawaii nurse alleged to have swapped a patient's Adderall tablets for Seroquel

Hawaii's Regulated Industries Complaints Office alleged that a nurse was terminated by her employer, a treatment center operating as Nova Luna Center and ʻAi Pono Hawaii, after she allegedly removed four Adderall tablets from a patient's medication pill packet and replaced them with four Seroquel tablets. RICO further alleged she had no authorization to possess, obtain, furnish or administer the Adderall herself, in potential violation of the state nursing statute and Board of Nursing rules. The matter was resolved through a Board-approved settlement agreement, which is a compromise of claims and not a finding of liability. The action was included in the DCCA disciplinary summary covering actions through August 2024.

Former nurse accused of replacing fentanyl with tap water in IV drips at Oregon hospital

Medford, OR

Attorneys representing living and deceased patients filed a $303 million wrongful death and medical malpractice lawsuit against an Oregon hospital after a former nurse was accused of replacing prescribed fentanyl with nonsterile tap water in intravenous drips. The complaint accuses the hospital of negligence and failing to monitor medication administration and prevent drug diversion by employees. Police began investigating after hospital officials noticed a spike in central line infections and said they believed an employee had been diverting fentanyl; the former nurse was arrested in June and charged with 44 counts of second-degree assault and has pleaded not guilty.

Pharmacy technician charged with diverting controlled substances on multiple occasions

Cowlitz County, Washington

In September 2024, the Pharmacy Quality Assurance Commission charged a pharmacy technician with unprofessional conduct. The charges state the technician admitted to diverting controlled substances on multiple occasions while employed as a pharmacy technician in 2023. The case was listed under Cowlitz County in the state disciplinary summary.

Home care aide accused of failing to administer and account for residents' narcotic medications

In September 2023, a home care aide allegedly failed to document and potentially failed to administer required narcotic medications to multiple residents she was caring for. She also allegedly failed to complete required narcotic counts and did not respond to the Department of Health's attempts to investigate. The Home Care Aide Program charged her with unprofessional conduct in September 2024.

Gate City Pharmacist Tampered with Oxycodone and Hydromorphone Tablets

Gate City, Virginia

A pharmacist in Gate City, Virginia, was sentenced to 24 months in federal prison after pleading guilty to tampering with oxycodone and hydromorphone at the pharmacy where he worked. He swapped oxycodone tablets with prednisone, a steroid, and hydromorphone tablets with leflunomide, a rheumatoid arthritis drug, then dispensed the substituted pills to patients. He also shorted some patients' prescriptions and kept the withheld pills for himself. Investigators warned the tampering created a risk that a pharmacist filling a later prescription could unknowingly dispense the wrong drug to a customer, endangering patients relying on legitimate pain or inflammation control.

Tennessee Board of Nursing accepts surrender of practical nurse over Gallatin diversion

Gallatin, Tennessee

The Tennessee Board of Nursing disciplined a licensed practical nurse in Gallatin over controlled-substance diversion, according to the August 2024 disciplinary action report. The order records that the licensee diverted controlled substances from their employer, and the board accepted a voluntary surrender of the licence. A board order is an administrative finding on the board's own investigation, not a criminal conviction, and the report states no quantity.

Tennessee Board of Nursing suspends registered nurse over Riceville diversion

Riceville, Tennessee

The Tennessee Board of Nursing disciplined a registered nurse in Riceville over controlled-substance diversion, according to the August 2024 disciplinary action report. The order records that the licensee diverted controlled substances from their employer, and the board suspended the licence with terms. A board order is an administrative finding on the board's own investigation, not a criminal conviction, and the report states no quantity.

Tennessee Board of Nursing accepts surrender of advanced practice nurse over Hendersonville diversion

Hendersonville, Tennessee

The Tennessee Board of Nursing disciplined a advanced practice nurse in Hendersonville over controlled-substance diversion, according to the August 2024 disciplinary action report. The order records that the licensee diverted controlled substances from their employer, and the board accepted a voluntary surrender of the licence. A board order is an administrative finding on the board's own investigation, not a criminal conviction, and the report states no quantity.

Tennessee Board of Nursing suspends registered nurse over Memphis diversion

Memphis, Tennessee

The Tennessee Board of Nursing disciplined a registered nurse in Memphis over controlled-substance diversion, according to the August 2024 disciplinary action report. The order records that the licensee diverted controlled substances from their employer, and the board suspended the licence. A board order is an administrative finding on the board's own investigation, not a criminal conviction, and the report states no quantity.

Tennessee Board of Pharmacy accepts surrender of pharmacy technician over Knoxville diversion

Knoxville, Tennessee

The Tennessee Board of Pharmacy disciplined a pharmacy technician in Knoxville over controlled-substance diversion, according to the August 2024 disciplinary action report. The order records that the licensee diverted controlled substances from their employer, and the board accepted a voluntary surrender of the licence. A board order is an administrative finding on the board's own investigation, not a criminal conviction, and the report states no quantity.

Tennessee Board of Pharmacy revokes pharmacy technician over Dayton diversion

Dayton, Tennessee

The Tennessee Board of Pharmacy disciplined a pharmacy technician in Dayton over controlled-substance diversion, according to the August 2024 disciplinary action report. The order records that the licensee diverted controlled substances from their employer, and the board revoked the licence. A board order is an administrative finding on the board's own investigation, not a criminal conviction, and the report states no quantity.

Tennessee Board of Nursing disciplines registered nurse over Soddy Daisy diversion

Soddy Daisy, Tennessee

The Tennessee Board of Nursing disciplined a registered nurse in Soddy Daisy over controlled-substance diversion, according to the August 2024 disciplinary action report. The order records that the licensee diverted controlled substances from their employer, and the board imposed discipline. A board order is an administrative finding on the board's own investigation, not a criminal conviction, and the report states no quantity.

Pharmacist-in-charge convicted of conspiring to dispense oxycodone through a co-owned pharmacy to individuals with illegitimate prescriptions

A pharmacist pleaded guilty in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida to one count of conspiracy to distribute and dispense a controlled substance. In the plea agreement, the pharmacist admitted that he and co-conspirators, through a pharmacy he co-owned and operated as the pharmacist-in-charge, dispensed oxycodone 30 mg pills to individuals with obviously illegitimate prescriptions for cash. The pharmacist was responsible for unlawfully dispensing and distributing at least 12,494 oxycodone 30 mg pills to five individuals for approximately $96,600 in cash. The Maryland Board of Pharmacy revoked the pharmacist's license based on the conviction.

Maui nurse sanctioned after alleged diversion of Adderall from patient medication packet

The Hawaii State Board of Nursing sanctioned a Maui nurse with a $5,000 fine on Aug. 1, 2024, in a board-approved settlement agreement. The state alleged the nurse was terminated by Nova Luna Inc., dba Nova Luna Center and 'Ai Pono Hawaii, because she diverted four Adderall tablets from a patient's medication pill packet, replaced them with four Seroquel tablets, and had no authorization to possess, obtain, furnish, or administer the Adderall herself.

Hospital certified nursing assistant and registered medical assistant charged with diverting oxycodone from a patient

Spokane County, Washington

In August 2024, the secretary of health charged a certified nursing assistant and registered medical assistant with unprofessional conduct. The alleged facts state that from November to December 2021, the aide falsely identified herself as a patient's sister at the hospital where she was employed and diverted oxycodone from that patient. She also allegedly provided the patient Adderall and Remeron without a prescription, and in January 2022 her urinalysis was positive for alprazolam without a prescription. The case was charged and is subject to the disciplinary process.

Hospital Pharmacy Manager Stole 35,000+ Opioid Vials from Secure Vault

Muncie, Indiana

Christopher Knoth, pharmacy manager at IU Health Ball Memorial Hospital, was arrested in July 2024 after an audit and search warrant revealed he had taken hydromorphone, methadone, and morphine vials from the hospital's secure vault over roughly five years. Felony charges were filed in August 2025.

Grand Forks Surgery Center Nurse Suspended Over Suspected Medication Diversion

Grand Forks, North Dakota

The North Dakota Board of Nursing accepted a Stipulation for Settlement on July 25, 2024 for Sherry Fjestad, an RN/LPN employed at North Dakota Surgery Center in Grand Forks from August 2021 until she was terminated in May 2024 amid allegations of suspected diversion of controlled medications. The Board suspended her license indefinitely and assessed a $2,000 penalty plus costs.

Oklahoma City Anesthesiologist Convicted of Diverting Hospital Opioids

Oklahoma City, Oklahoma

A federal jury convicted a contract anesthesiologist on 18 counts of obtaining controlled substances by deceit or subterfuge after he exploited his hospital access to divert fentanyl, ketamine, hydromorphone, and midazolam. On at least six occasions in March 2022, he withdrew large quantities of controlled substances by claiming they were needed for patient surgeries he was not scheduled to perform and did not perform, then falsely reported disposing of the drugs while keeping them for himself. He was indicted in September 2023 and convicted at trial in July 2024, facing up to four years in federal prison on each of the 18 counts.

Manchester hospital agreed to pay $300,000 to resolve controlled-substance recordkeeping allegations after fentanyl diversion

Catholic Medical Center in Manchester, New Hampshire agreed to pay $300,000 to resolve allegations that it failed to keep accurate records of controlled substances, including opioids. A Drug Enforcement Administration audit found the hospital's records did not accurately reflect its inventory for seven controlled substances, including fentanyl. The allegations arose from an investigation into a nurse anesthetist who diverted leftover fentanyl and falsified disposal records. The settlement is not a finding of liability, and the hospital did not admit wrongdoing.

Catholic Medical Center Pays $300,000 Over CRNA's Fentanyl Diversion

Manchester, New Hampshire

Catholic Medical Center in Manchester, New Hampshire, agreed to pay $300,000 to resolve allegations it violated the Controlled Substances Act by failing to keep accurate records of controlled substances, after an independent certified registered nurse anesthetist stole fentanyl from the hospital for nearly a year. The nurse removed fentanyl from syringes intended for operating-room patients, replaced it with saline and hydromorphone, and falsely recorded leftover doses as wasted rather than actually discarding them, generating false wasting records. A DEA audit found the hospital's controlled-substance inventory records for seven drugs, including fentanyl, did not match the quantities actually on hand, and that it lacked effective controls to prevent theft. The nurse pleaded guilty in June 2024 to tampering with consumer products; the hospital did not admit liability but implemented new controls.

Hospital pharmacy manager diverted hydromorphone, methadone and morphine from a CII safe using unused transaction types

Muncie, IN

A proposed settlement agreement before the Indiana Board of Pharmacy states that a hospital pharmacist serving as pharmacy manager used normally-unused transaction types in the hospital's automated inventory system to remove controlled substances from the CII safe and take personal possession of them between November 2020 and July 2024, using his duty to transfer controlled substances to affiliated outpatient centers as cover. The agreement states the hospital lacked auditing and comparison procedures that would have detected the discrepancies between amounts recorded as utilized at the outpatient centers and actual patient utilization. The hospital reported the suspected loss to the DEA and the Board in July 2024 and disclosed the loss of hydromorphone, methadone and morphine on an amended DEA Form 106. Under the agreement the hospital's pharmacy license and controlled substances registration would be placed on indefinite probation for not less than three years with a $44,000 fine, and criminal charges were filed against the pharmacist in 2025.

Okanogan County nurse admitted diverting controlled substances; hydromorphone removal cited

Okanogan County, WA

In July 2024, the Board of Nursing (formerly the Nursing Commission) entered an agreed order with conditions with a registered nurse and advanced registered nurse practitioner. The nurse must continue to comply with a monitoring program. In October 2023, the nurse removed hydromorphone for multiple patients who did not have orders for hydromorphone and did not document the administration or waste of the medication. The nurse admitted to diverting controlled substances for approximately two years.

Telehealth Firm Done Global Indicted in $100M Adderall Distribution Scheme

San Francisco, California

In June 2024, DOJ indicted Done Global founder and CEO Ruthia He and clinical president David Brody for a $100 million scheme that allegedly caused the dispensing of millions of doses of Adderall and other stimulants without a legitimate medical purpose. Both were later convicted at trial.

Palomar Health Pays $250,000 Over Fentanyl Diversion in Cath Lab

Escondido, California

Palomar Health, California's largest public health care district, paid $250,000 to resolve allegations that fentanyl was diverted from its Cardiac Catheterization Lab in Escondido and that the district failed to keep accurate controlled-substance records. The government's investigation, opened after Palomar Health self-disclosed that an employee may have diverted controlled substances, concluded that numerous vials of fentanyl were removed from the lab's automated medication dispensing machines over a five-month period and that unused fentanyl was not properly disposed of. In addition to the payment, Palomar Health entered a memorandum of agreement with the DEA requiring enhanced security, specialized staff training, and improved controlled-substance handling procedures.

Registered nurse charged with stealing oxycodone and hydrocodone/acetaminophen from residents at Prince George Healthcare Center

Georgetown, SC

A registered nurse employed at Prince George Healthcare Center in Georgetown, South Carolina, was arrested and charged with six counts of exploitation of a vulnerable adult and six counts of theft of a controlled substance, first offense. The charges allege that between February 19 and March 7, 2023, the nurse stole for personal use and withheld oxycodone and hydrocodone/acetaminophen prescribed to six residents. The case was reported by the facility to the Georgetown Police Department and investigated by the South Carolina Attorney General’s Vulnerable Adults and Medicaid Provider Fraud unit and the state Bureau of Drug Control.

ICU nurse accused of diverting patients' liquid fentanyl and replacing it with tap water at a Medford, Oregon hospital

Medford, OR

Police in Medford, Oregon, announced the arrest of a former intensive care unit nurse on suspicion of swapping patients' pain medication with tap water. According to a police statement, there was concern that the nurse had been diverting patients' liquid fentanyl for personal use and then replacing it with tap water, causing serious infections; the arrest followed a hospital report of a growing number of central line infections. The nurse faces 44 counts of second-degree assault, charges police said reflect the total number of patients the investigation revealed to have been affected. A lawsuit filed in March alleged that a hospitalized patient's pain medication was replaced with nonsterile tap water, introducing bacteria that led to death; the nurse also voluntarily agreed in November 2023 to a nursing license suspension pending completion of an investigation.

Registered nurse and advanced practice nurse charged after removing hydromorphone without patient orders and admitting to diverting controlled substances from the workplace

Okanogan County, Washington

The Washington State Board of Nursing charged a registered nurse and advanced registered nurse practitioner with unprofessional conduct in June 2024. Charges state that in October 2023 the nurse removed hydromorphone for multiple patients who had no orders for the drug and did not document its administration or waste. The nurse admitted to diverting controlled substances from the workplace for personal use over roughly two years. The case is pending.

Texarkana pharmacist pleads guilty to falsifying records to conceal theft of methadone and other narcotics

A former staff pharmacist at a Texarkana, Arkansas pharmacy pleaded guilty in the Western District of Arkansas to altering records to hide thefts of narcotics between April 2023 and April 2024. Court records state the pharmacist used the pharmacist-in-charge's login to conceal the thefts and allegedly took the drugs for personal use over a long period. The pharmacist was released on an unsecured appearance bond pending sentencing, and the Arkansas State Board of Pharmacy lists the license as suspended.

Madera pharmacist pleaded guilty to dispensing over 200,000 opioid pills on forged prescriptions

A Madera pharmacist pleaded guilty in federal court to conspiring to distribute and distributing oxycodone and hydrocodone. According to court records, from December 2014 through November 2018 the pharmacist dispensed more than 200,000 pills through the pharmacy he owned on prescriptions he knew were forged, delivered by two co-defendants who paid in cash. He faces a statutory maximum of 20 years in prison on each count, with the actual sentence to be set by the court.

New Hampshire hospital nurse anesthetist pleaded guilty after substituting saline for operating-room fentanyl

A nurse anesthetist at a Manchester, New Hampshire hospital pleaded guilty in June 2024 to tampering with consumer products. According to the U.S. attorney's office, the nurse admitted replacing liquid fentanyl intended for an operating-room patient with saline and another drug. Investigators said the nurse diverted leftover fentanyl instead of discarding it, falsified disposal records, and took controlled substances about once a day for roughly a year. Sentencing had not yet occurred when the plea was reported.

Physician terminated by employer for diverting fentanyl, versed and dilaudid from patients

Tampa, FL

At its June 21, 2024 meeting, the Texas Medical Board entered an agreed order publicly referring a physician to the Texas Physician Health Program. The Board found the physician suffers from impairment and was terminated by his employer based on unprofessional conduct and diverting fentanyl, versed, and dilaudid from patients.

Long Island pharmaceutical employee sentenced to six years for stealing thousands of oxycodone pills from employer

A 64-year-old Bellerose resident was sentenced to six years in prison followed by two years of post-release supervision for stealing thousands of oxycodone pills from her employer, a Suffolk County-based pharmaceutical business. The case was prosecuted by Suffolk County authorities and reported on May 31, 2024. The district attorney used the case to warn about the dangers of buying prescription medications from illegal sources.

Dodge County Hospital Nurse Diverted Oxycodone Using Automated Dispensing Cabinet Swap

Dodge County, Minnesota

Jennifer Lee Garrison, a post-anesthesia care nurse at a Minnesota hospital, pleaded guilty to obtaining a controlled substance by fraud after diverting oxycodone from an automated dispensing cabinet for her own use. Garrison withdrew two-pill oxycodone orders but gave patients only one pill, falsifying patient pain reports to conceal the shortfall. She also triggered a separate transaction for oxybutynin, a non-controlled drug, opening its drawer to mask an additional withdrawal of oxycodone from an adjacent drawer before canceling the oxybutynin transaction. The scheme ran from August 2022 to July 2023, escalating to roughly six diverted pills a day, and ended with a guilty plea in May 2024.

Barbourville Pharmacy Pays $215,000 Over Red-Flag Prescription Failures

Barbourville, Kentucky

Smith Family Pharmacy in Barbourville, Kentucky, and its pharmacist-in-charge, Stephanie Smith, agreed to pay $215,000 in civil penalties to resolve allegations that they violated the Controlled Substances Act by filling prescriptions bearing clear diversion red flags. From April 2017 to December 2021, the pharmacy filled over 500 prescriptions for oxycodone and oxymorphone that showed red flags such as dangerous drug combinations, unusually high dosages, and patients traveling out of state to see prescribers, without resolving those concerns as the CSA's corresponding-responsibility rule requires. Some of the prescriptions had been written by out-of-state physicians later convicted of illegal prescribing. As part of the settlement, the pharmacy entered a four-year Memorandum of Agreement with the DEA requiring stronger dispensing controls.

Registered nurse sentenced to probation for stealing OxyContin from a hospital narcotics cabinet and replacing it with other medications

Canton, SD

A registered nurse at Sanford Canton-Inwood Medical Center in Canton, South Dakota, removed OxyContin from blister packs in a narcotics cabinet and replaced it with melatonin and acetaminophen, then resealed the packs, according to the document. The nurse used the stolen OxyContin for personal use. The nurse pleaded guilty on March 6, 2024, to obtaining a controlled substance by misrepresentation, fraud, forgery, deception, and subterfuge, and was sentenced on May 24, 2024, to two years probation and a $100 special assessment.

Pharmacy technician charged with taking Promethazine-Codeine syrup from pharmacy

King County, Washington

A pharmacy technician was charged with unprofessional conduct by the Pharmacy Quality Assurance Commission in May 2024. The charges allege that in December 2023 the technician was seen taking two bottles of Promethazine-Codeine Syrup from the pharmacy where they worked, and that approximately 46 bottles of Promethazine-Codeine were unaccounted for during times the technician worked at pharmacies from January to December 2022.

Clinic pharmacy assistant charged with stealing OxyContin and Oxycodone prescriptions from the clinic where she worked

Whitman County, Washington

The Pharmacy Quality Assurance Commission charged a pharmacy assistant with unprofessional conduct in May 2024. Charges state that in November 2023 the assistant stole prescriptions for OxyContin and Oxycodone from the clinic where she worked. The case is pending.

Nurse at Texas Health Hurst-Euless-Bedford diverted fentanyl, morphine, and other controlled substances from an automated dispensing cabinet

Bedford, TX

A registered nurse at a Texas hospital was investigated for removing two Norco 5 mg tablets from an automated dispensing cabinet when the physician's order was for only one tablet. A facility audit found 10 mg of morphine, 100 mcg of fentanyl, 2.5 mg of diazepam, and 15 mg of temazepam unaccounted for, and indicated the nurse removed morphine without an order and failed to document wastage or return of unused controlled substances. The Arkansas State Board of Nursing placed the nurse's license on probation for two years and imposed a civil penalty and remedial education.

Hospital Pharmacy Technician Pleaded Guilty to Tampering with Hydromorphone

Norwich, Connecticut

Tiffany Moss, a pharmacy technician at Backus Hospital in Norwich, Connecticut, admitted stealing part of a hydromorphone solution meant for patients, using her badge to access secure storage and remove three bags of the drug. She replaced the missing portions with saline and pleaded guilty to tampering.

New Jersey drug manufacturer settles claims it failed to account for oxycodone, hydrocodone and temazepam

A pharmaceutical manufacturer, a subsidiary of a larger drug company, agreed to pay $2.25 million to resolve allegations that it violated the Controlled Substances Act by failing to account for approximately 3.1 kg of oxycodone, 7.7 kg of hydrocodone and 30 kg of temazepam between January 2019 and August 2021. DEA identified the alleged violations during on-site inspections that began in the summer of 2021. The company also entered a memorandum of agreement with DEA requiring operational improvements for three years. The claims settled are allegations only, and there has been no determination of liability.

ICU nurse sentenced for tampering with fentanyl and hydromorphone at Ardmore hospital

Ardmore, OK

A nurse employed in the intensive care unit of Mercy Hospital in Ardmore, Oklahoma, pleaded guilty to stealing fentanyl and hydromorphone intended for ICU patients, removing the pain medication from vials, refilling the vials with tap water, and returning them to controlled storage. The nurse was sentenced to 12 months in prison for one count of Tampering with Consumer Products.

Arkansas nurse self-reported diverting and consuming hydrocodone from employer

Cabot, AR

A nurse self-reported diverting and consuming hydrocodone from the employer at Cabot Health and Rehab. No disciplinary action was stated.

Arkansas rehabilitation facility nurse self-reported diverting hydrocodone

A nurse working at a health and rehabilitation facility in Cabot, Arkansas, is listed in a national drug-diversion incident database as having self-reported diverting and consuming hydrocodone from the employer. The database entry does not describe any board, court or employer outcome. The only date given is the date the entry was last updated, not the date of any charge or order.

Labor & Delivery Nurse Stole Pain Meds from 50+ New Mothers

Waterloo, Iowa

From January 2022 to March 2023, Christina Eileen Olson diverted narcotics from at least 50 new mothers at a Waterloo hospital's labor and delivery unit, falsely charting doses as administered while replacing fentanyl in a vial with saline. She was sentenced to one year and one day in federal prison.

Former Scripps Encinitas anesthesiologist placed on seven-year probation for taking and self-administering propofol and opioids

The Medical Board of California placed a former Scripps Memorial Hospital Encinitas anesthesiologist on seven years' probation through a stipulated settlement and disciplinary order, with the license revocation stayed. According to the order, the physician told board investigators she had self-administered propofol during a May 2022 shift and had taken home vials of leftover fentanyl, hydromorphone and midazolam roughly a dozen times the prior month. Probation conditions include drug testing, practice monitoring, psychotherapy, a substance abuse support group, patient notification and a bar on solo practice. The physician has not worked at a Scripps facility since May 2022.

Eastern Kentucky physician and clinic nurse sentenced for conspiracy to issue illegitimate opioid prescriptions

A physician who practiced at several Pikeville-area clinics and a nurse who worked at the same clinics were convicted at trial of conspiring to unlawfully distribute controlled substances through prescriptions written outside the usual course of professional practice. Evidence showed large monthly quantities of opioids, sometimes combined with benzodiazepines, and that the physician wrote multiple oxycodone prescriptions for the nurse, who also signed the physician's name to prescriptions. In early 2024 a federal judge sentenced the physician to 100 months and the nurse to 60 months in prison.

Oregon registered nurse accused of pulling narcotics and failing to document administration or wastage

In March 2024, the Board of Nursing charged a registered nurse with unprofessional conduct. The charge alleged that in January 2023 the nurse pulled narcotics and failed to document their administration or wastage. The case is listed under out-of-state Oregon.

Mississippi pharmacy technician pleaded guilty to fraudulently obtaining hydrocodone from pharmacy inventory

A pharmacy technician from Fayette pleaded guilty in federal court to fraudulently obtaining possession of a controlled substance. According to court documents and facts admitted in open court, the technician used the position at a Jefferson County pharmacy to acquire large numbers of prescription hydrocodone pills from the pharmacy's inventory. Sentencing was set for April 30, 2024, with a statutory maximum of four years in prison.

Valley Center Veterinary Clinic Pays $125,000 Over Controlled-Substance Mishandling

Valley Center, California

Best Veterinary Care, doing business as Valley Center Veterinary Clinic in San Diego County, California, paid $125,000 to resolve allegations that it violated the Controlled Substances Act between 2020 and 2022. A DEA inventory audit found the clinic could not account for pills of the benzodiazepines alprazolam and diazepam and the opioid tramadol, and that it lacked effective controls to guard against theft and diversion of its controlled-substance stock. The clinic entered a Memorandum of Agreement with the DEA requiring additional safeguards for handling controlled substances going forward.

Hospice Nurse Stole Morphine from Dying Patient, Replaced with Cranberry Juice

Clifton, Texas

Ashley Kay Bidwell, a nurse at Clifton Lutheran Sunset Ministries' Sunset Home, stole morphine from a hospice patient and refilled the container with cranberry juice to conceal the theft. She was arrested in April 2022 and sentenced in January 2024 to four years in prison.

Default order for diversion of controlled substance from pharmacy

A default board order was entered for diversion of a controlled substance from a pharmacy. The sanction was revocation.

Hospital nurse anesthetist accused of diverting fentanyl and propofol intended for surgical patients

Las Vegas, NM

A nurse anesthetist was accused of diverting fentanyl and propofol meant for patients undergoing surgery, allegedly for personal use. The nurse denied the allegations and disputed the strength of the evidence. State investigators and the hospital reportedly found he took extreme measures to avoid drug testing after doctors, nurses, and pharmacists raised concerns, and the Board of Nursing negotiated a disciplinary settlement involving probation and monitored drug testing.

Michigan Physician Suspended Over Bloomfield Township Drug Diversion and Fraud Conviction

Bloomfield Township, Michigan

A Michigan physician in Bloomfield Township had a license suspended after the state licensing bureau's disciplinary action report cited a criminal conviction, drug diversion, insurance fraud, and lack of good moral character as the basis for action.

Hospital registered nurse's license revoked after fentanyl tampering and diversion

Janesville, WI

The Board of Nursing found that a registered nurse employed at a hospital in Janesville, Wisconsin, diverted fentanyl. On or around November 7 and 8, 2021, three tampered fentanyl vials were discovered in hospital automated dispensing cabinets, and analysis showed punctured stoppers and markedly reduced fentanyl concentrations in some vials. Records showed excessive fentanyl overrides, unaccounted fentanyl, and large recorded fentanyl waste; the nurse refused a drug screen and resigned when confronted. The nurse later pleaded guilty in federal court to tampering with a consumer product involving injectable fentanyl, and the Board revoked the nursing license.

Iowa Nurse Pleads Guilty to Diverting Controlled Substances from Life Care Center

Carroll, Iowa

A nurse employed at a life care center in Carroll, Iowa diverted controlled substances intended for residents and falsified related patient records to conceal the theft. The scheme, which took place between November and December 2020, was uncovered through a Medicaid Fraud Control Unit investigation into the facility's recordkeeping. She pleaded guilty in federal court in Sioux City in November 2023 to acquiring a controlled substance by fraud and to making false statements relating to health care matters, days before she was scheduled to stand trial. Investigators noted she had a prior burglary conviction from a separate, unrelated theft of controlled substances from a private home.

Norfolk Children's Hospital Pays Civil Penalty for Unregistered Warehouse Fentanyl Gap

Norfolk, Virginia

Children's Hospital of the King's Daughters (CHKD) in Norfolk, Virginia, agreed to pay $68,400 to settle civil allegations that it violated Controlled Substances Act recordkeeping requirements. The government alleged that between March and December 2021, CHKD had packages of compounded prescription controlled substances — including a delivery of 200 one-milliliter fentanyl syringes — routed to its receiving warehouse, a location not registered with the DEA, and could not account for whether that fentanyl shipment ever reached its registered pharmacy. As part of the resolution, CHKD entered a separate agreement with the DEA Diversion Group to implement corrective measures. CHKD made no admission of liability.

Boston-Area ER Nurse Sentenced for 412 Unauthorized Opioid Withdrawals

Boston, Massachusetts

Andrea Falzano, an emergency department nurse at a Massachusetts hospital, used her access to a locked drug cabinet to withdraw morphine, fentanyl, and hydromorphone under the names of already-discharged patients. Over roughly five months beginning in May 2019, she made 412 unauthorized withdrawals tied to 299 discharged patients. Negative drug tests taken during the investigation showed she was not actually consuming the opioids she reported using, undercutting her claim to the hospital and the state nursing board that the theft was an isolated incident. She pleaded guilty to three counts of unlawfully obtaining controlled substances by fraud, deception, and subterfuge, and in November 2023 was sentenced to three months in prison and one year of supervised release.

Michigan Physician Surrenders License Over Big Rapids Drug Diversion and Fraud Conviction

Big Rapids, Michigan

A Michigan physician in Big Rapids voluntarily surrendered a license after the state licensing bureau's disciplinary action report cited a criminal conviction, drug diversion, failure to report, and insurance fraud as the basis for action.

Alabama Pharmacist Sentenced for Diverting Tens of Thousands of Oxycodone Pills from His Own Pharmacy

Gadsden, Alabama

The pharmacist in charge at Midtown Pharmacy in Gadsden, Alabama ordered at least 80,000 more oxycodone pills than the pharmacy ever dispensed to patients, diverting the surplus for resale to other drug distributors between 2015 and late 2021. He regularly took distributor stock bottles home, repackaged the pills into plastic bags, and sold them, earning an estimated $450,000 in unreported income that he failed to declare on his federal tax returns. He pleaded guilty in July 2023 to conspiracy to unlawfully distribute controlled substances and to filing false tax returns, and was sentenced in November 2023 to 54 months in prison, ordered to forfeit $110,620 in drug proceeds, and ordered to pay $124,547 in restitution to the IRS.

Tennessee Board of Nursing accepts surrender of registered nurse over Pulaski diversion

Pulaski, Tennessee

The Tennessee Board of Nursing disciplined a registered nurse in Pulaski over controlled-substance diversion, according to the November 2023 disciplinary action report. The order records that the licensee stole controlled substances from inventory, and the board accepted a voluntary surrender of the licence. A board order is an administrative finding on the board's own investigation, not a criminal conviction, and the report states no quantity.

Tennessee Board of Nursing suspends registered nurse over Crossville diversion

Crossville, Tennessee

The Tennessee Board of Nursing disciplined a registered nurse in Crossville over controlled-substance diversion, according to the November 2023 disciplinary action report. The order records that the licensee diverted controlled substances from their employer, and the board suspended the licence with terms. A board order is an administrative finding on the board's own investigation, not a criminal conviction, and the report states no quantity.

Tennessee Board of Nursing suspends registered nurse over Dyersburg diversion

The Tennessee Board of Nursing disciplined a registered nurse in Dyersburg over controlled-substance diversion, according to the November 2023 disciplinary action report. The order records that the licensee diverted controlled substances from their employer, and the board suspended the licence with terms. A board order is an administrative finding on the board's own investigation, not a criminal conviction, and the report states no quantity.

Tennessee Board of Pharmacy places on probation pharmacy technician over Covington diversion

The Tennessee Board of Pharmacy disciplined a pharmacy technician in Covington over controlled-substance diversion, according to the November 2023 disciplinary action report. The order records that the licensee stole controlled substances from inventory, and the board placed the licensee on probation. A board order is an administrative finding on the board's own investigation, not a criminal conviction, and the report states no quantity.

Iowa Nurse Pleads Guilty to Diverting Fentanyl from Waterloo Hospital via False Wasting

Waterloo, Iowa

A registered nurse at a Waterloo, Iowa hospital diverted fentanyl, hydromorphone, and morphine for his own use over a two-month span in 2022 by falsely documenting that he had wasted full vials because patients had refused the drug. He took the job at the Waterloo hospital despite having already admitted to diverting narcotics at an affiliated Iowa City hospital in the same network and while under a monitoring agreement with the state nursing board's assistance program that barred him from working with narcotics. He pleaded guilty in October 2023 in federal court in Cedar Rapids to acquiring a controlled substance by fraud, deception, and subterfuge, and agreed to forfeit his nursing license. He had already surrendered his state nursing license to the Iowa Board of Nursing in December 2022.

Jacksonville Surgical Center Nurse Pleads Guilty to Tampering With Hydromorphone

Jacksonville, Florida

Katherine Jee Rankin, a registered nurse at a Jacksonville surgical center, was confronted after a supervisor discovered she had forged an anesthesia record and was being fired. While still in the building following her termination, a coworker and a surveillance camera caught her removing vials from the controlled-substances cabinet. Rankin admitted to other employees that she had an addiction and had been taking drugs from the facility, then turned over four vials of injectable hydromorphone she had emptied, refilled with saline, and resealed with glue so the center's drug count would balance. Lab testing confirmed physical and chemical tampering in all four vials, and a records review found falsified administration entries — including a digit altered from 1 to 2 to mask abnormal 200 mL doses. She pleaded guilty in October 2023 to tampering with a consumer product.

Registered nurse diverted and consumed Oxycodone on-shift in cardiac surgery unit

A registered nurse disclosed to the Board that between October and November 2023 they diverted and consumed Oxycodone while working on-shift in the cardiac surgery unit at PeaceHealth of Riverbend Medical Center. The nurse voluntarily surrendered their registered nurse license.

Agency nurse accused of diverting fentanyl at Watertown hospital; interim suspension

Watertown, WI

A registered nurse was the subject of an investigation into allegations that the nurse diverted and used fentanyl while working as an agency nurse assigned to a hospital in Watertown, Wisconsin. The Board of Nursing had not determined whether any statutes or rules were violated. The nurse agreed to an interim suspension of the privilege to practice as a registered nurse in Wisconsin pending final resolution of the disciplinary matter.

VA nurse pleaded guilty to stealing fentanyl, morphine and hydromorphone

Aurora, CO

A nurse pleaded guilty to stealing fentanyl, morphine and hydromorphone from the Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Denver. The nurse diverted from two facilities, including the VA, and was sentenced to 14 months in prison.

VA pharmacy supervisor suspected of stealing painkillers and testosterone over five years

Salt Lake City, UT

A pharmacy supervisor was suspected of stealing more than 24,000 painkillers and 25 vials of testosterone over five years. The incidents occurred at the George Wahlen Veterans Affairs Medical Center and VA Salt Lake City Health Care System.

Traveling nurse fired from Little Rock hospital after positive fentanyl test; Arkansas board ordered cease and desist

A Texas-licensed traveling nurse practiced in Arkansas under the Interstate Nurse Licensure Compact and began a 13-week staffing-agency contract at a Little Rock hospital in October 2021. In January 2022 the nurse's drug test came back positive for fentanyl and the hospital ended the employment. The Arkansas State Board of Nursing sent a cease-and-desist letter for unprofessional conduct, and a national licensure database showed the nurse still barred from practicing in Arkansas as of October 2023.

Idaho Falls assisted living employee entered Alford plea to financial card charge after residents' hydrocodone was allegedly swapped for acetaminophen

An employee of an Idaho Falls assisted living center entered an Alford plea in state district court to an amended charge of criminal possession of a financial transaction card or number. The employee had originally been charged with grand theft, obtaining a controlled substance by fraud or forgery and misdemeanor abuse or neglect of a vulnerable adult after the facility owner reported that 190 hydrocodone pills belonging to residents had been replaced with acetaminophen; those charges were dismissed under the plea agreement. An Alford plea does not admit the underlying allegations, and the employee denied the drug allegations in interviews with police.

Janesville Hospital Nurse Sentenced for Tampering With Fentanyl Vials

Janesville, Wisconsin

Dawn Drum, a registered nurse at SSM Health St. Mary's Hospital in Janesville, Wisconsin, was found to have an excessive pattern of fentanyl overrides and wastes compared to other staff when hospital management audited its automated medication-dispensing system in November 2021. Drum had been withdrawing fentanyl from vials, replacing the drug with saline, and resealing the stoppers with what appeared to be glue before returning the tampered vials to the dispensing cabinet for use on other patients. When confronted and asked to submit to a drug test, she refused and resigned instead. She pleaded guilty in May 2023 to product tampering and was sentenced in September 2023 to 15 months in prison, one year of supervised release, and a $30,000 fine.

Kansas City, Kansas grocery pharmacy settles allegations of dispensing before receiving prescriptions

A Kansas City, Kansas company entered into a civil settlement agreement with the federal government to pay $250,000 to resolve allegations that a retail pharmacy it owns violated civil provisions of the Controlled Substances Act. The government alleged that between February 2019 and June 10, 2022 the Price Chopper Pharmacy dispensed controlled substances before receiving prescriptions, improperly partially filled prescriptions, and failed to maintain controlled substance inventory records. A settlement is not a finding of liability.

Central Illinois pharmacy technician sentenced to 30 months for diverting hydrocodone and other controlled substances

A Le Roy, Illinois pharmacy technician was sentenced on September 7, 2023 to 30 months in federal prison for theft of medical products and possession of a controlled substance with intent to distribute. According to court documents cited by the DEA, the technician stole hydrocodone, alprazolam and promethazine with codeine while employed at a pharmacy and sold them illegally. At sentencing, the court found the technician responsible for diverting more than 28,000 hydrocodone pills to the illicit market.

Louisiana registered nurse placed on stayed suspension and probation on a charge of diverting non-narcotic medication

At its September 13, 2023 hearing, the Louisiana State Board of Nursing listed action against a registered nurse on a charge of diversion of non-narcotic medication. The license was suspended, with the suspension stayed, and probated for a minimum of one year with stipulations. The board's listing marks the matter as resolved by consent order and does not describe the underlying facts or the setting.

Out-of-state compact nurse ordered to stop practicing in Louisiana on charges including diversion of a controlled substance and a drug screening violation

The Louisiana State Board of Nursing's September 13, 2023 action list includes a nurse who had been practicing in Louisiana under a Nurse Licensure Compact privilege. The nurse was charged with a drug screening violation, inappropriate acquisition or diversion of a controlled substance, and failure to cooperate with the board's investigation. The board ordered the nurse to cease and desist from practicing registered nursing in Louisiana on compact privileges. The listing does not describe the drug, the setting, or the underlying facts, and the charges are allegations as listed by the board.

Louisiana nurse ordered probated on any reinstatement after charges of controlled-substance diversion, falsified records and a criminal conviction

The Louisiana State Board of Nursing's September 13, 2023 action list includes a registered nurse charged with inappropriate acquisition or diversion of a controlled substance, misappropriation of patient or other property, filing false reports or falsifying records, conduct evidencing ethical or moral unfitness, and a criminal conviction. The published entry states that upon reinstatement the license shall be probated to run concurrently with a monitoring agreement. The portion of the entry describing the immediate action on the license is not included in the available excerpt, and the listing does not describe the drug or the setting.

Out-of-state compact nurse ordered to stop practicing in Louisiana on charges of controlled-substance diversion and failure to cooperate

A second compact-privilege nurse on the Louisiana State Board of Nursing's September 13, 2023 action list was charged with failure to cooperate with a board investigation and inappropriate acquisition or diversion of a controlled substance. The board ordered the nurse to cease and desist from practicing registered nursing in Louisiana under compact privileges. The listing does not identify the drug, the setting, or the underlying facts, and the charges are allegations as listed by the board.

ICU nurse at Mercy Hospital in Ardmore pleaded guilty to stealing fentanyl and hydromorphone and swapping pain medication with tap water

Ardmore, OK

An ICU nurse pleaded guilty to tampering with pain medications, including fentanyl. According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office, the nurse admitted to stealing fentanyl and hydromorphone intended for patients in the intensive care unit at Mercy Hospital in Ardmore. The nurse also confessed to swapping pain medication with tap water in March and April 2022.

Registered nurse convicted of tampering with fentanyl citrate vials and obtaining controlled substance by fraud at Chamberlain hospital

Chamberlain, SD

A registered nurse at a hospital in Chamberlain, South Dakota, was convicted of obtaining a controlled substance by misrepresentation, fraud, forgery, deception, and subterfuge. According to the text, between June 19 and September 11, 2021, the nurse removed fentanyl citrate for injection from a vial, replaced most of it with saline solution, and returned the tampered vial to storage knowing the diluted fentanyl could be dispensed to surgical patients. The nurse was sentenced in September 2023 to two years of probation and a $100 special assessment to the Federal Crime Victims Fund. The text also states the nurse was indicted in October 2022 on charges including tampering with consumer products and obtaining a controlled substance by fraud; those counts were alleged.

Hospital nurse tampered with fentanyl vial, replacing drug with saline

Pierre, SD

A registered nurse working at a Chamberlain hospital was sentenced for obtaining a controlled substance. Between June 19 and September 11, 2021, the nurse tampered with a vial of fentanyl citrate stored by the hospital, removed the fentanyl for injection and replaced most of it with saline solution. The nurse returned the tampered vial to storage knowing the diluted fentanyl could be dispensed to surgical patients to treat severe pain. The nurse was sentenced to two years of probation on September 11, 2023.

Admission of taking controlled substances from a pharmacy for personal use

The individual admitted to taking drugs without authorization from the pharmacy for personal use (2 counts). A felony theft of controlled substance under $150,000 was deferred. The sanction was 90 days suspension and 5 year probation.

Pharmacist charged with diverting hydrocodone/APAP tablets from a West Virginia pharmacy

Stonewood, WV

A Vermont-licensed pharmacist was charged by the Vermont Board of Pharmacy with diverting controlled substances from a pharmacy in Stonewood, West Virginia. The specification alleged that the pharmacist took 25 to 50 hydrocodone/APAP tablets per day from the pharmacy for 3 to 5 years without a prescription, including while filling legitimate prescriptions for himself and/or family and accessing non-public areas to remove bottles. The pharmacy reported losses of 7,000 hydrocodone/APAP 10/325 mg tablets to the United States Drug Enforcement Administration, and the losses were attributed to the pharmacist. The requested relief includes license revocation, suspension, reprimand, conditions, or other discipline.

Ardmore ICU Nurse Pleads Guilty to Replacing Patients' Pain Medication With Tap Water

Ardmore, Oklahoma

Rebecca Elaine Holloway, a nurse in the intensive care unit at Mercy Hospital in Ardmore, Oklahoma, admitted to stealing fentanyl and hydromorphone intended for ICU patients in acute pain between March and April 2022. She removed the pain medication from its vials, refilled the empty vials with tap water, and returned the tampered vials to the hospital's controlled storage locker so they would be administered to unsuspecting patients. She admitted she knew this deprived critically ill patients of pain relief and placed them at risk of death or bodily injury. Holloway pleaded guilty in August 2023 to tampering with consumer products following an investigation by the FDA and the Oklahoma Bureau of Narcotics.

Sioux City Nurse Pleads Guilty to Stealing Opioids from Hospital Employer

Sioux City, Iowa

A nurse at a Sioux City, Iowa hospital stole fentanyl, morphine, hydromorphone, and hydrocodone that were meant to be dispensed to patients, diverting the drugs for her own use. She concealed the theft by falsifying documentation, including omitting required information from controlled-substance disbursement log entries. She pleaded guilty on August 30, 2023 in federal court in Sioux City to acquiring a controlled substance by fraud and to making false statements relating to health care matters. The case was investigated jointly by Iowa's Medicaid Fraud Control Unit, the Department of Health and Human Services, and the DEA.

Nebraska Practical Nurse License Revoked Over Narcotic Count Discrepancies

Nebraska

The Nebraska Board of Nursing revoked a licensed practical nurse's ability to practice after alleging she failed to complete required narcotic medication counts at one care facility and, at a second facility, documented giving narcotic pain medication to patients who denied receiving it and signed out narcotics more often than physicians had ordered.

Pharmacy technician's credential revoked for theft of controlled substances from employer pharmacy

A pharmacy technician's credential was revoked for theft of controlled substances from the employer pharmacy. The Board also prohibited the individual from applying or reapplying to practice or assist in the practice of pharmacy. The action was taken by consent agreement accepted during the August 2023 Board meeting.

Cumberland, Maryland Pharmacy Reaches Consent Decree Over Fraudulent Opioid Prescriptions

Cumberland, Maryland

A federal judge approved a consent decree between the United States and Beckman's Greene Street Pharmacy in Cumberland, Maryland, and its pharmacist, John A. Beckman, resolving civil allegations that they violated the Controlled Substances Act. The government alleged that since at least 2017 the pharmacy filled fraudulent prescriptions while ignoring red flags — including dangerous drug combinations such as an opioid, a benzodiazepine, and carisoprodol (the "holy trinity"), opioid-and-buprenorphine pairings, cash payments despite available insurance, and daily doses up to 1,000 morphine milligram equivalents. The government further alleged the pharmacy dispensed opioids to more than ten patients who died within ten days of filling those prescriptions. Under the decree, the pharmacy agreed to pay a $120,000 civil penalty and adopt a red-flag documentation and prescription-refusal protocol going forward.

Pharmacist-in-charge diverted hydrocodone and tramadol powder from a pharmacy controlled-substance safe; Maryland license revoked

The Maryland Board of Pharmacy found that a pharmacist who was pharmacist-in-charge at a pharmacy in Virginia diverted controlled substances. A camera in the pharmacy area captured him removing medication from the controlled substance safe and placing it in his pocket, and on several occasions into a cup; a subsequent inventory showed 847 mg of tramadol powder and 2,947 mg of hydrocodone powder missing. The pharmacy's president stated in writing that the pharmacist admitted taking controlled substances, including hydrocodone powder, and using them in his coffee and other beverages while working, and the pharmacist admitted to Virginia Board investigators that he diverted controlled substances for personal use between August 13 and October 13, 2021, after which he was terminated. The Board revoked his Maryland license by order dated July 2023.

Minnesota home hospice nurse diverted controlled substances from 24 patients

The Minnesota Department of Health investigated an allegation that a hospice registered nurse diverted controlled substance medications belonging to patients receiving hospice care in their homes. The department determined that financial exploitation was substantiated and that the nurse was responsible for diverting 24 patients' controlled substance medications. The agency was issued a correction order, the nurse is no longer employed there, and the report was referred to the Board of Nursing, the Drug Enforcement Administration and local prosecutors for possible further action.

Surgery Center RN Sentenced for Swapping Fentanyl for Saline in ~450 Vials

Jensen Beach, Florida

From February 28 to April 18, 2022, circulating nurse Catherine Shannon Dunton took fentanyl from nearly 450 vials at a Jensen Beach outpatient surgery center and refilled them with saline before returning the vials to stock. She was sentenced to 48 months in federal prison.

Wilmington family-medicine physician paid $170,000 to resolve allegations of unlawful opioid prescribing

A physician practicing at a Wilmington family-medicine clinic agreed to pay $170,000 to resolve alleged Controlled Substances Act violations. The government contended that from about 2009 to 2018 the physician issued opioid and other controlled-substance prescriptions outside the usual course of professional practice, including the opioid, benzodiazepine, and muscle-relaxer combination on nearly 400 occasions and nearly 9,000 Schedule II prescriptions over a two-year period. The physician had previously surrendered his DEA registration and agreed not to reapply for Schedule II prescribing authority until April 30, 2024. The settlement is not an admission of liability, and the government's assertions are allegations only.

Cheshire Medical Center Pays $2 Million After Nurse Stole Fentanyl IV Bags

Keene, New Hampshire

Cheshire Medical Center in Keene, New Hampshire agreed to pay $2 million after a nurse stole 23 intravenous fentanyl bags from a dispensing machine, with 634 more bags later unaccounted for; the nurse died in March 2022. A follow-up DEA audit found 17,961 additional missing controlled-substance units and recordkeeping failures. The settlement was announced June 22, 2023.

New Hampshire hospital paid $2 million to settle DEA record-keeping allegations after fentanyl diversion

Federal drug enforcement authorities announced a $2 million settlement with a New Hampshire regional medical center over alleged record-keeping violations under the Controlled Substances Act. The settlement followed the hospital's discovery that an employed nurse had been diverting bags of fentanyl beginning in October 2021; the hospital's own investigation counted 283 diverted bags and could not account for an additional 163. A settlement resolves allegations and is not a finding of liability. The state Office of Professional Licensure and Certification also disciplined the hospital's chief nursing officer, director of pharmacy and a pharmacist.

New Hampshire hospital agreed to pay $2 million to settle allegations that poor drug records allowed theft

Cheshire Medical Center in New Hampshire agreed to pay $2 million in a settlement announced in June 2023. According to the U.S. Attorney's office, the settlement followed the hospital's failure to keep accurate records of its drugs, which allowed the drugs to be stolen. Reporting referenced state licensing documentation in which a nurse in the hospital's intensive care unit self-reported. A settlement is not a finding of liability.

CVS pharmacy manager diverted hydromorphone tablets and liquid solution for personal use; license revoked

Berlin, VT

A pharmacist and pharmacy manager at a CVS pharmacy in Berlin, Vermont admitted to diverting hydromorphone 8 mg tablets, approximately 100 over several months in 2021, and an unknown amount of liquid hydromorphone 1 mg/mL solution for personal use. The pharmacist also documented the expected tablet count as in stock even though he knew the count was off because of the diversion, and told investigators he replaced the diverted liquid volume with distilled water to make it appear full; testing later showed diphenhydramine in the solution. The Vermont Board of Pharmacy found the pharmacist in default, treated the allegations in the Specification of Charges as proven, and revoked his license.

National chain pharmacy manager disciplined after oxycodone reported lost/stolen as employee pilferage

Waldorf, MD

A Maryland Board of Pharmacy consent order resolved charges against a pharmacist and pharmacy manager at a national chain pharmacy in Waldorf, Maryland. The pharmacy reported a controlled substance theft/loss and classified it as employee pilferage; a DEA report listed oxycodone HCL 10 mg and 15 mg tablets lost or stolen. The Board found the pharmacist violated patient safety and standard-of-care rules for filling questionable CII prescriptions without validation and for refusing-to-dispense requirements, while fraud and false-record charges were dismissed as unsubstantiated. The order reprimanded the license, placed it on probation for at least one year, required continuing education, and imposed a $1,000 fine.

Montgomery County Pharmacy Reaches Consent Decree Over Fraudulent Opioid Dispensing

Germantown, Maryland

The United States reached a consent decree with Upton Care Pharmacy, Inc. and its pharmacist, Abtin Youssefi-Rashti, resolving civil allegations that they violated the Controlled Substances Act between 2018 and when the pharmacy closed in 2022. The government alleged the pharmacy dispensed controlled substances to more than 300 patients who traveled over 180 miles to fill prescriptions, regularly filled concurrent opioid-and-stimulant combinations, accepted cash payment despite available insurance, and dispensed doses up to 1,800 morphine milligram equivalents per day. Under the decree, Youssefi-Rashti agreed to pay a $100,000 civil penalty, surrender his pharmacist's license for at least three years, and Upton Care surrendered its DEA registration.

Raleigh-Area Nurse Sentenced for Tampering with Surgical Patients' Painkillers

Fuquay-Varina, North Carolina

Melissa Elizabeth Chacona, a nurse at a Raleigh-area surgical practice, began extracting fentanyl, morphine, and meperidine from vials in early 2019 and replacing the medication with saline, compromising at least 78 vials intended for surgical patients. Testing found some vials held less than 15% of the labeled drug. She pleaded guilty and was sentenced in May 2023 to 48 months in federal prison.

Cape Girardeau Nurse Admits Taking Leftover Fentanyl from Hospital

Cape Girardeau, Missouri

Lindsey M. Francis, a registered nurse at Saint Francis Medical Center in Cape Girardeau, Missouri, admitted taking and injecting leftover fentanyl from tampered vials on multiple occasions beginning in mid-2021, a practice discovered in January 2022 after a colleague found a used syringe in a locker room. She pleaded guilty in May 2023 to unlawfully acquiring a controlled substance.

Surgical practice nurse sentenced for tampering with fentanyl, morphine, and meperidine and replacing them with saline

Raleigh, NC

A nurse at a Raleigh-area surgical practice pleaded guilty to tampering with painkillers intended for surgery patients. According to court documents, beginning in early 2019 and over several months, the nurse extracted fentanyl, morphine, and meperidine from vials and replaced it with saline, compromising at least 78 vials. The nurse was sentenced to 48 months in prison and three years of supervised release, and the plea agreement requires permanent surrender of the nursing license.

Pharmacy technician's credential revoked for theft of oxycodone tablets from a patient's prescription

A pharmacy technician's credential was revoked by the Louisiana Board of Pharmacy for the theft of eight oxycodone tablets from a patient's prescription. The Board also prohibited the individual from applying or reapplying to practice or assist in the practice of pharmacy. The action was taken at the Board's May 24, 2023 meeting.

Denver Paramedic Supervisor Sentenced for Stealing 1,900 Vials of Fentanyl

Denver, Colorado

Christopher Robert Pattinson, a paramedic field lieutenant supervisor at a Denver-area hospital, stole approximately 1,900 vials of fentanyl from the paramedic department over four years, altering narcotics logs to conceal the theft and, in his final months, replacing fentanyl in ambulance kits with a clear liquid believed to be saline. He was sentenced in April 2023 to three years in federal prison.

Chicago-Area Rehab Center Nursing Director Pleads Guilty to Diluting Patients' Morphine

Chicago, Illinois

Sarah Diamond, Assistant Director of Nursing at a Chicago-area medical rehabilitation center responsible for dispensing patient medications, removed liquid morphine from bottles prescribed to at least five patients in July and August 2021 and replaced it with another liquid so the volume would appear unchanged. Two diluted bottles were later found to contain only about 26 percent and 53 percent of their declared morphine content. Diamond then administered the diluted doses to patients being treated for pain while keeping the withheld morphine for her own use. She pleaded guilty in April 2023 to tampering with a consumer product.

Hospital nurse accused of diverting fentanyl from CHI Health St. Elizabeth

Lincoln, NE

A former registered nurse at CHI Health St. Elizabeth in Lincoln, Nebraska, is accused of taking fentanyl from the hospital and improperly accounting for fentanyl waste in medical records. According to court documents, an audit found numerous fentanyl checkouts with discrepancies in May and June 2022, and a urine test was positive for fentanyl. The nurse denied taking the medication and resigned in July 2022. The nurse has been charged with acquiring a controlled substance by fraud; an arrest warrant was issued and she had not yet been arrested.

Nursing home director of nursing used pre-signed prescription pads to divert hydrocodone

Montgomery, AL

A director of nursing at a Montgomery-area nursing home used prescription pads pre-signed by the facility's medical director to fax fraudulent prescriptions to the pharmacy between November 2022 and April 2023. She then took the hydrocodone delivered by the pharmacy's courier for herself rather than the patients. She pleaded guilty to second-degree theft, was sentenced to 18 months in community corrections, and surrendered her nursing license.

Missoula Hospital Nurse Sentenced for Diverting Opioids Flagged by Distribution Audit

Missoula, Montana

Caitlin Ashley Evans, a nurse at St. Patrick Hospital in Missoula, was caught after a hospital official reviewing drug distribution data in October 2021 noticed she was ordering oxycodone, hydromorphone, hydrocodone, and fentanyl at far higher rates than her peers; a coworker separately reported suspicious activity by Evans. When confronted by hospital administrators, Evans admitted she had been diverting drugs since the fall of 2020 by taking waste amounts of hydromorphone and morphine two to three times a week, substituting saline before disposal. She pleaded guilty in November 2022 to obtaining controlled substances by fraud, deception, and subterfuge, and was sentenced in March 2023 to three years of probation.

Kansas Nurse Sentenced for Tampering with Fentanyl and Hydromorphone Vials

Overland Park, Kansas

Alec Ramirez, a nurse at Menorah Medical Center in Overland Park, Kansas, removed vials of fentanyl and hydromorphone from an automated dispensing cabinet in March 2021 and replaced the drugs with another liquid before returning the vials to the cabinet. He pleaded guilty to tampering with a consumer product and possession of fentanyl by deception, and was sentenced in March 2023 to 18 months in prison.

Kansas hospital nurse sentenced for tampering with fentanyl and hydromorphone vials

A former registered nurse at an Overland Park, Kansas hospital was sentenced to 18 months in federal prison and forfeited his nursing license after stealing controlled substances from his employer. According to court documents, in March 2021 he removed vials of fentanyl and hydromorphone from an automated dispensing cabinet, replaced the contents with an alternate liquid, and returned the vials to the cabinet. A federal grand jury had indicted him in November 2021 on two counts of tampering with a consumer product and two counts of obtaining controlled substances by deception and subterfuge.

Licensed practical nurse removed controlled substances from workplace while also working under a suspended license and submitting a fraudulent Board letter

The Georgia Board of Nursing revoked a licensed practical nurse's license after finding she removed controlled substances from her workplace, continued working as an LPN while her license was suspended, and drafted a fraudulent letter purportedly from the Nursing Board. The Court upheld the Board's revocation decision.

Virginia Nurse License Suspended Over Roanoke-Area Hospital Opioid Diversion

Roanoke and Blacksburg, Virginia

A Virginia nurse who worked at Carilion Roanoke Memorial Hospital and LewisGale Hospital had a nursing license suspended after a local TV investigation and Virginia Board of Nursing action found she took pain medication meant for patients in severe pain, falsely documented that it had been given, and used the diverted opioids herself while on duty.

Vermont registered nurse's license conditioned after attempted diversion of medications from a facility medication cart

The State charged a registered nurse in June 2022 with attempting to divert medications at the facility where she worked; according to the charges, she changed her mind before removing the medications and left them in the top drawer of the medication cart. Her employment at the facility was terminated as a result of the attempted diversion. A Stipulation and Final Order entered February 27, 2023 conditioned her license, including provisions applying if she attends a nursing program with a clinical component.

Michigan Pharmacist Sentenced for Selling 25,000+ Opioid Pills from His Own Pharmacy

Madison Heights, Michigan

A pharmacist who owned and operated Great Health Pharmacy in Madison Heights, Michigan used the pharmacy to unlawfully dispense controlled substances outside the course of legitimate pharmacy practice. He filled prescriptions brought to him by a patient recruiter for cash, sometimes dispensing in the names of people who never came to the pharmacy, and at other times sold entire stock bottles of controlled substances directly to the recruiter with no prescription at all. He pleaded guilty to unlawfully dispensing more than 25,000 dosage units of oxycodone, oxymorphone, and other Schedule II drugs, plus over 200,000 milliliters of promethazine with codeine, and to money laundering. He was sentenced in February 2023 to 84 months in federal prison and ordered to forfeit approximately $1.2 million in cash seized during the investigation; a co-defendant patient recruiter was separately sentenced to 72 months.

Missouri Methadone Clinic Owner Admits Diluting Methadone to Conceal a Shortage from the DEA

Leadington, Missouri

A physician who owned Best Medical LLC, a family medicine practice in Leadington, Missouri, opened a DEA-registered methadone clinic in 2021 to treat patients with narcotic use disorders. Days after the clinic received its first shipment of methadone oral concentrate, the doctor discovered a shortage but instead of reporting it to the DEA within the required one business day, he waited and then had the clinic's clinical director file a report understating the missing amount. He then came into the closed clinic on a Sunday and added saline and water to the remaining methadone supply to mask the shortfall. He pleaded guilty in February 2023 in federal court in St. Louis to adulterating a drug with intent to defraud or mislead and agreed to surrender his DEA registration.

Pharmacy technician diverted a customer's oxycodone prescription at a Hagerstown pharmacy

Hagerstown, MD

The Maryland State Board of Pharmacy found that a pharmacy technician employed at a pharmacy in Hagerstown, Maryland diverted 45 pills of oxycodone 5 mg/325 mg from a customer's prescription on January 4, 2022. According to the pharmacy's investigative report, the technician removed the prescription from the bag in the customer waiting area, placed the pills in her pocket, and deleted the prescription on hold. The technician admitted to the pharmacy's asset protection manager and in a written statement that she took the patient's medication to self-medicate a back injury. The Board revoked her pharmacy technician registration.

Pharmacy technician admitted to stealing controlled substances from employer pharmacy

A certified pharmacy technician admitted to stealing controlled substances from the pharmacy where they were employed. The Louisiana Board of Pharmacy revoked the credential and barred the individual from applying or reapplying to practice or assist in the practice of pharmacy.

Pharmacy technician accused of forging controlled substance prescriptions from employer pharmacy

A certified pharmacy technician was alleged to have forged controlled substance prescriptions from the pharmacy where they were employed. The Louisiana Board of Pharmacy revoked the credential and barred the individual from applying or reapplying to practice or assist in the practice of pharmacy.

Registrant's registration revoked for diversion of controlled substance from pharmacy

A registrant's registration was revoked by default board order. The order cited diversion of a controlled substance from a pharmacy, with a violation date of February 2023.

Massachusetts Nursing Home Nurse Sentenced for Diluting a Dementia Patient's Morphine

Northborough, Massachusetts

A registered nurse employed at a Worcester County, Massachusetts nursing home was working an overnight shift in a dementia care unit in November 2020 when she tampered with a bottle of morphine sulfate prescribed to a resident in her care, removing some of the drug and replacing it with water. A nurse on a later shift administered the diluted dose to the patient before the tampering was discovered. She pleaded guilty in March 2022 to tampering with a consumer product and to obtaining a controlled substance by fraud and deception, and was sentenced in January 2023 in federal court in Worcester to 52 months in prison and three years of supervised release.

Massachusetts Nurse Sentenced for Tampering With Fentanyl at Hospital and Surgery Center

Massachusetts

Hugo Vieira, a nurse who worked at a Massachusetts hospital's post-surgery recovery unit and an outpatient vascular surgery center, removed fentanyl from vials intended for surgical patients between 2017 and January 2019 and replaced it with saline to conceal the theft. When the tampering was discovered, law enforcement recovered 60 tampered vials at the surgery center and two more at the hospital recovery unit; testing showed the vials contained only 1.3 to 7 percent of their declared fentanyl concentration. Vieira pleaded guilty in May 2022 to tampering with a consumer product and was sentenced in January 2023 to five years of probation, including one year of home detention, and a $20,000 fine.

Pain clinic nurse practitioner conspired to dispense fentanyl by forging a physician's signature on prescriptions

A nurse practitioner at a pain management clinic was convicted of conspiring to dispense fentanyl products outside the usual course of professional practice and without a legitimate medical purpose. She admitted to seeing patients unsupervised while impaired by her own drug use and to having a co-defendant forge a physician's signature on controlled-substance prescriptions. She was sentenced to 20 months in federal prison after cooperating with prosecutors.

Central Pennsylvania hospital nurse charged with diverting morphine from an emergency department

State prosecutors filed a criminal complaint in December 2022 accusing a former emergency department registered nurse of using subterfuge and falsified records to obtain morphine that investigators say was never given to the patients it was drawn for. The complaint alleges three episodes in June and July, including the use of saline syringes to simulate witnessed waste. These are allegations that had not been resolved at the time of the report. State licensing records showed the nurse's license was indefinitely suspended in September of that year, and the hospital confirmed the person no longer worked there.

Kansas long-term care pharmacy settles allegations of improper Schedule II emergency dispensing

A long-term care pharmacy in Lenexa, Kansas agreed on December 13, 2022 to pay $3 million to resolve allegations that it violated federal law in dispensing Schedule II controlled substances. The government alleged that between October 1, 2019 and March 31, 2021 the pharmacy dispensed Schedule II drugs for purported emergencies in quantities greater than adequate for the emergency period and failed to obtain the required written prescriptions. The settlement also resolved claims that Medicare and Medicaid improperly paid for controlled substances dispensed without valid prescriptions. The pharmacy self-reported the violations to the DEA, and the settlement is not a finding of liability.

Kentucky hospital agrees to $4.4 million civil penalty over recordkeeping that allowed pharmacy technician to divert 60,000 opioid doses

Federal prosecutors in Lexington announced that Pikeville Medical Center agreed to pay a $4.4 million civil penalty to resolve claims that inaccurate inventory and dispensing records allowed a pharmacy technician to divert more than 60,000 doses of oxycodone, hydrocodone and methadone from the narcotics vault and automated dispensing cabinets between January 2016 and September 2018. The settlement does not determine liability, and prosecutors noted the hospital self-reported the diversion and cooperated with the Drug Enforcement Administration. The technician and a spouse pleaded guilty in 2020 to conspiracy to distribute the drugs and received sentences of 41 and 38 months respectively.

Kentucky hospital pharmacy technician diverted over 60,000 opioid doses; hospital paid civil penalty

Federal prosecutors said a hospital system in eastern Kentucky failed to keep accurate controlled-substance inventories and dispensing records, which enabled a then pharmacy technician to divert more than 60,000 doses of oxycodone, hydrocodone and methadone from the narcotics vault and automated dispensing cabinets between January 2016 and early September 2018. The technician and her husband pleaded guilty in 2020 to a conspiracy to distribute the drugs and received prison sentences of 41 and 38 months. The hospital self-reported the diversion, cooperated with the DEA, and agreed to pay a $4.4 million civil penalty under a settlement that does not determine liability, plus a three-year memorandum of agreement with inspection, reporting and training requirements. The exact settlement announcement date is not stated in the source; the plea year is used above.

Iowa Nurse Pleads Guilty to Diverting Fentanyl From Elderly Patients' IV Pumps

Clear Lake, Iowa

A nurse diverted liquid fentanyl intended for elderly patients by withdrawing it directly from their IV pumps with a syringe for his own use. The Iowa Department of Inspections and Appeals Medicaid Fraud Control Unit investigated the diversion, which involved fentanyl meant to be administered to patients under his care. He pleaded guilty on November 21, 2022, in federal court in Sioux City, Iowa, to acquiring a controlled substance by misrepresentation, fraud, deception, and subterfuge. Sentencing was pending at the time of the plea, and he faced up to four years in prison.

Alaska registered nurse surrendered license over diversion and substance-abuse allegations

The Alaska Board of Nursing adopted a voluntary surrender of a registered nurse's license on November 1, 2022, over allegations of diversion and substance abuse. The board's disciplinary order cites violations of AS 08.68.270(3), AS 08.68.270(7), and 12 AAC 44.770(8) and (22), the state's unprofessional-conduct provisions that cover misappropriating drugs for personal or unauthorized use. The published board record does not identify the employer, setting, or specific drug involved.

Pharmacy technician admitted to theft of controlled substances from her employer; credential revoked

A pharmacy technician admitted to the theft of various controlled substances from her employer. Acting on that admission, the Louisiana Board of Pharmacy revoked her credential and further prohibited her from applying or reapplying to practice or assist in the practice of pharmacy. The Board approved the voluntary consent agreement at its regular meeting on November 16, 2022.

Vermont chain pharmacy manager diluted hydromorphone oral solution and falsified inventory records

The manager of a retail chain pharmacy in Berlin, Vermont was convicted in federal court of obtaining controlled substances by fraud and sentenced to three years of probation. According to court records, the pharmacist removed hydromorphone oral solution from a stock bottle for personal use, diluted the remainder with liquid diphenhydramine and distilled water, re-taped the tamper seal and returned the bottle to inventory where it could have been dispensed to patients. The pharmacist also obtained hydromorphone tablets and solution by making false entries in the ordering and inventory systems. Public board records cited in the release describe earlier hydromorphone thefts in 2015 and 2016 that had led to conditions on the pharmacist's license; the license was reinstated in 2020 and then suspended in September 2021 when the new allegations surfaced.

South Dakota hospital ambulance fentanyl vials found filled with saline; no suspect identified

During a daily controlled-substance count on an ambulance in August 2022, a medic noticed two fentanyl vials that looked unusual and turned them over to the hospital pharmacy, where testing the following month showed both contained normal saline. The hospital reported the suspected diversion to the state Department of Health and the Division of Criminal Investigation, which was still reviewing the matter with no suspect identified. A November 2022 state inspection found the hospital had no policies for securing ambulance medications, that a master override key for the electronic medication safes had been accessible to all ambulance staff, and that medications had been kept in a keyed cabinet while the safes' doors were away for software updates.

Le Roy pharmacy technician pleaded guilty to diverting hydrocodone and other controlled substances

A Le Roy pharmacy technician was indicted in October 2021 and pleaded guilty in November 2022 to theft of medical products and possession of a controlled substance with intent to distribute. Court documents state he stole hydrocodone, alprazolam and promethazine with codeine while employed as a technician and sold them illegally, diverting over 28,000 hydrocodone pills. He was later sentenced to 30 months in federal prison.

Colorado Nurse Sentenced Over ICU Fentanyl Drip Diversion

Denver, Colorado

A Denver hospital nurse was sentenced to five years of probation after pleading guilty to stealing most of a bag of fentanyl intended for a comatose, intubated ICU patient by lowering the IV pump's drip rate and falsifying the flow-rate record, then draining a second fentanyl bag into a cup and refilling it with saline before hospital staff intervened.

Dubuque Pharmacist Sentenced for Stealing and Tampering With Patients' Medications

Dubuque, Iowa

A pharmacist who worked at two Dubuque-area pharmacies stole more than 2,500 doses of controlled substances from pharmacy inventory between 2018 and 2020. In February and March 2020, he also tampered with medication already filled for six prescriptions belonging to five different patients, including two children, by opening the capsules, removing most or all of the drug, and putting the empty capsules back into stock bottles so they would still be dispensed to patients. He pleaded guilty to acquiring controlled substances by deception and tampering with consumer products, and was sentenced to two years in federal prison, fined $10,000, ordered to pay $9,993 in restitution, and required to forfeit his pharmacy license.

St. Louis County Hospital Nurse Pleads Guilty to Fraudulently Obtaining Fentanyl

St. Louis County, Missouri

A registered nurse at Mercy Hospital South in St. Louis County, Missouri fraudulently obtained fentanyl from an automated medication dispensing machine for her own use on multiple occasions over about two weeks in early 2020. She pleaded guilty to obtaining a controlled substance by fraud and was scheduled for sentencing.

DC nurse diverted fentanyl from two Washington hospitals

Washington, DC

Between November 3 and November 27, 2019, while employed as a registered nurse at Sibley Memorial Hospital in Washington, DC, the nurse drew controlled substances she did not administer, reported medication as wasted, and drew medication that had not been prescribed for her patients. The hospital investigated and required a drug test; on December 17, 2019 the nurse failed to provide a sample and resigned the same day. At MedStar Georgetown University Hospital, an investigation covering September 23, 2020 to January 13, 2021 found comparable handling and documentation violations involving fentanyl, including withdrawals for patients who were not assigned to her, and a drug test on January 22, 2021 returned positive for fentanyl. The nurse admitted diverting fentanyl for personal use. The Board of Nursing summarily suspended the license on July 23, 2021 and issued a final order on October 27, 2022 revoking it with the revocation stayed: the license stays suspended until January 31, 2023 and is restored only through full participation with the Committee on Impaired Nurses.

Traveling Nurse Sentenced for Diverting Opioids at Four Montana Facilities

Anaconda, Montana

A traveling nurse diverted oxycodone and hydrocodone from four different Montana facilities in 2021: Community Hospital of Anaconda, Copper Ridge Health and Rehabilitation Center, Continental Care and Rehabilitation Center, and The Ivy, all in the Butte-Anaconda-Deer Lodge area. She routinely withdrew opioids from pharmacy stock without documenting administration to patients, moving to a new facility within days each time a prior employer discovered a shortage. Staff drug screens after each incident came back negative for other nurses, and she either refused testing or produced a diluted or cold urine sample. She pleaded guilty in June 2022 to three counts of unlawfully obtaining controlled substances and was sentenced to one year and one day in prison followed by one year of supervised release.

Former Nurse Pleads Guilty to Diverting Opioids From Two Boston-Area Hospitals

Boston, Massachusetts

A former nurse pleaded guilty to unlawfully obtaining controlled substances from two separate Boston-area hospitals over several years. While working as a student nurse in 2018, she admitted to hospital investigators that she had stolen and self-injected fentanyl. In 2020, while employed at a different Boston-area hospital, she stole an infusion bag containing fentanyl that was actively being used to treat a patient, and on another occasion took multiple syringes of hydromorphone from a locked drug cabinet. She pleaded guilty to four counts of unlawfully obtaining controlled substances by fraud, deception, and subterfuge.

Pain clinic nurse practitioner convicted of diverting opioids to a family member using other patients' names

Eagle River, AK

A federal jury convicted a nurse practitioner who operated a pain management clinic on 10 felony counts tied to illegal opioid prescribing. Evidence showed she wrote opioid prescriptions under other individuals' names to divert nearly 5,000 pills to her opioid-addicted, live-in partner, and fabricated appointment records for those individuals to conceal the scheme. She also pre-signed and pre-dated prescriptions for non-medical staff to hand out to patients for cash payments when she was away from the office.

Pharmacy technician took controlled substance from pharmacy for personal use

An agreed Texas Board of Pharmacy order states that a pharmacy technician took a controlled substance from the pharmacy for personal use. The order suspended the technician until cleared by a mental health professional and imposed five years of rehabilitation probation. The order also noted an incapacity preventing practice as a pharmacy technician or technician trainee with reasonable skill, competence, and safety.

Missouri nurse diverted fentanyl at two hospitals after being fired for the first diversion

A registered nurse from Cape Girardeau pleaded guilty in federal court in the Eastern District of Missouri to obtaining a controlled substance by fraud, admitting she fraudulently obtained fentanyl for personal use. Prosecutors said pharmacy staff at a St. Louis-area hospital flagged her in early 2020 for withdrawing two to three times more fentanyl than her peers, and she was fired after a positive drug test. She later took a job in another hospital's intensive care unit and was fired again in January 2022 over her fentanyl handling. She was sentenced to four years of probation.

Registered nurse diverted oxycodone, hydrocodone/acetaminophen, and hydromorphone from patients at a Madison medical center

Madison, WI

A registered nurse at a medical center in Madison, Wisconsin, admitted diverting pain medications from patients for personal use over about 1.5 years, totaling approximately 100 patients and 200 dosages. The nurse admitted diverting oxycodone, hydrocodone/acetaminophen, and liquid hydromorphone on June 12 and 13, 2021, and had charted that a patient had already received pain medication when the patient asked for it. The nurse later pled guilty to federal charges of acquiring hydrocodone/acetaminophen, oxycodone, and hydromorphone by misrepresentation/fraud/deception by entering patient information into the automated dispensing cabinet and removing controlled substances for personal use. The Board accepted the voluntary surrender of the nurse's license and imposed costs and reinstatement restrictions; the nurse received three years of probation and a $3,500 fine.

Hilo Hospital Nurse Charged With Stealing Fentanyl

Hilo, Hawaii

A former Hilo Medical Center nurse was charged in September 2022 with second- and third-degree promotion of a dangerous drug and two counts of obtaining a controlled substance through fraud, deceit, misrepresentation or theft, following an investigation by Hawaii's State Narcotics Enforcement Division and the Hawaii Police Department into alleged fentanyl theft tied to incidents at the hospital. She pleaded not guilty at arraignment and was released on $55,000 bail pending further proceedings.

Connecticut Outpatient Clinic Nurse Sentenced for Tampering With Fentanyl Vials

Hartford, Connecticut

A nurse employed by The Vascular Experts, a Connecticut outpatient medical practice, used his access to the facility's sedation supplies to withdraw fentanyl from vials meant for patient anesthesia and refill the vials with saline so the theft would go unnoticed. Another nurse at the practice noticed the tampered vials, and when company officials questioned him he admitted stealing the fentanyl to treat a medical condition of his own. He pleaded guilty to tampering with a consumer product and was sentenced to 24 months in prison, three years of supervised release, and a $5,000 fine.

Butte Hospital Nurse Sentenced for Diverting Hydromorphone Cartridges

Butte, Montana

A registered nurse working the post-operation floor at a Butte hospital diverted hydromorphone cartridges beginning in September 2020, generating an abnormally high number of oxycodone and hydromorphone transactions compared to other nurses on her floor. She recorded doses as 'wasted' or administered them and then cancelled the orders in the system to cover the theft. The hospital terminated her after she tested positive for hydromorphone and oxycodone/oxymorphone. She pleaded guilty in May 2022 to unlawfully obtaining a controlled substance and was sentenced to five years of probation.

Oklahoma nursing home LPN pleaded guilty to larceny of a patient's Schedule II medication

According to the Oklahoma Board of Nursing complaint, an LPN was terminated from a nursing home in February 2022 after admitting to a substance-abuse problem, diverting a patient's Schedule II medication for personal use and destroying the patient's narcotic record. The nurse was charged with felony larceny of a controlled dangerous substance in March 2022 and pleaded guilty in September 2022, receiving a five-year deferred sentence with supervised probation. The Board proposed a temporary suspension pending a hearing on the merits, which is an interim step rather than a final finding.

Detroit Hospital Nurse Pleads Guilty to Tampering With Critical Care Patients' Hydromorphone

Detroit, Michigan

A registered nurse in the critical care unit of a Detroit hospital removed vials and syringes of injectable hydromorphone from the unit's automated medication dispensing machines and replaced the drug with saline before returning the containers to the machines. The tampering occurred over roughly five months in 2020 and exposed critical care patients to inadequate pain relief without their knowledge. She pleaded guilty to tampering with a consumer product.

Massachusetts Paramedic Pleads Guilty to Tampering With Ambulance Fentanyl Vials

Needham, Massachusetts

A licensed EMT paramedic working part-time for a Massachusetts ambulance service tampered with three fentanyl citrate vials while on a shift in Needham in September 2020, removing most of the fentanyl and replacing it with saline; lab testing found the vials retained only 4.4%, 6.8%, and 24.2% of their declared fentanyl concentration. She was charged in June 2022 and pleaded guilty on August 30, 2022, to tampering with a consumer product, facing up to 10 years in prison at a sentencing later that year.

Charges announced in alleged opioid distribution network run from a Morris County physician's office

On August 5, 2022 the Acting Attorney General announced charges in what prosecutors describe as an opioid distribution network operated from a Morris County physician's office. The Acting Attorney General said that medical office employees who use their trusted positions to divert prescription opioids pose a grave risk to public health. The release lists four defendants and their counsel. The charges are allegations and had not been adjudicated at the time of the announcement.

Hospice nurse admitted diverting oxycodone and Oxycontin from two patients

Watertown, WI

The Board of Nursing adopted a stipulation and found that a registered nurse at a hospice center diverted controlled substances from two patients. The findings state that the nurse picked up prescriptions, signed for oxycodone and Oxycontin, delivered fewer tablets than she signed for, and set up e-prescribing requests without physician orders; she admitted to police that she diverted prescription medication from the patients. The Board suspended her nursing license for an indefinite period, stayed the suspension on compliance with treatment and monitoring conditions, and restricted her from working in settings with access to controlled substances.

New Mexico pharmacy settles federal claims after DEA inspections could not account for over 24,000 controlled-substance doses

A retail pharmacy in Peralta agreed to pay $50,000 to the United States to resolve civil penalty claims under the Controlled Substances Act. DEA on-site inspections found the pharmacy could not account for 24,422 doses of controlled substances, most of them opioid analgesics, along with 112 additional record-keeping violations and four dispensing violations. The settlement resolves civil claims and is not a finding of liability. The pharmacy owner had earlier surrendered the pharmacy's DEA registration, and the pharmacy later closed.

Missouri Nurse License Revoked Over Hospital Opioid Diversion and Unauthorized Badge Access

St. Louis, Missouri

The Missouri State Board of Nursing revoked a registered nurse's license after finding she diverted morphine and hydromorphone at Mercy Hospital East by extracting drug residue from vials and refilling them with saline to conceal the theft, then continued to access the hospital numerous times after being suspended, before a circuit court later ordered the board to issue a probated license instead.

Eastern Idaho nurse practitioner consented to civil judgment over hydrocodone prescriptions written for a third party

A nurse practitioner in eastern Idaho consented to a civil judgment in the U.S. District Court for the District of Idaho after admitting to unlawfully prescribing narcotics on more than 15 occasions. The government's complaint alleged that hydrocodone prescriptions were written in one patient's name and then handed to a third party to fill and use. The court found the practitioner civilly liable for violating the Controlled Substances Act and ordered a $30,000 fine.

North Carolina Hospital Nurse Sentenced for Tampering With Hydromorphone Vials

Winston-Salem, North Carolina

A contract nurse working in the pre/post-procedure unit at Novant Health Forsyth Medical Center in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, opened sealed container packages of injectable hydromorphone from an automated medication dispensing/monitoring system, removed and injected the drug herself, then refilled the vials with saline and reglued the caps before returning them to circulation for use on surgical patients. The scheme ran from July through November 2020. She was convicted of tampering with a consumer product and sentenced to 54 months in prison, three years of supervised release, and a $3,000 fine. This is a separate federal case from an earlier Virginia prosecution of the same nurse for diverting drugs at a different hospital.

Nursing home licensed practical nurse convicted of diverting 638 narcotics pills from residents

Georgiana, AL

A licensed practical nurse employed at a Georgiana nursing home was convicted after pleading guilty to four counts of second-degree theft of property. The investigation determined the nurse diverted 638 narcotics pills, including hydrocodone, oxycodone, tramadol and lorazepam, from residents for whom the medications were intended. The thefts occurred between November 5, 2020, and January 19, 2021. Sentencing was set for July 7, with a possible sentence of one to 10 years imprisonment and up to a $15,000 fine for each conviction.

Emergency room nurse sentenced to probation for diverting fentanyl from a Lincoln hospital pharmacy

Lincoln, NE

A former emergency room nurse at CHI Health St. Elizabeth in Lincoln resigned in July 2022 after hospital investigators found 55 discrepancies among more than 200 fentanyl checkouts from the pharmacy between May and June 2022, according to a Nebraska State Patrol investigation. Investigators said 2.65 mg of fentanyl was unaccounted for, and in some cases the nurse checked out the drug without a doctor's order or reported administering it within five minutes of patient discharge. After denying stealing or using the drug, the nurse's urine tested positive for fentanyl; she later pleaded guilty to acquiring a controlled substance by fraud and was sentenced to three years of probation. She gave up her nursing license.

York, Pennsylvania Personal Care Home Nurse Sentenced for Stealing a Hospice Patient's Oxycodone

York, Pennsylvania

A licensed practical nurse who administered a personal care home for senior citizens in York, Pennsylvania diverted oxycodone prescribed to a Medicare hospice patient in her care and falsified medical records to conceal the theft. She was sentenced to one year of probation and a $525 fine for theft in connection with health care and permanently surrendered her nursing license.

Baltimore Pharmacy and Pharmacist Settle Red-Flag Dispensing Allegations

Baltimore, Maryland

Ketan K. Dankhara, a Baltimore pharmacist, and his pharmacy, Falls RX, LLC d/b/a Ultra Care Pharmacy Baltimore, entered a federal consent decree resolving civil allegations that they filled fraudulent controlled-substance prescriptions while ignoring obvious red flags. Investigators found that a single individual repeatedly presented prescriptions for multiple different people for the same drug, strength, and quantity from the same prescriber, including prescriptions written by an OB/GYN for patients who were biologically male. Dankhara also falsely indicated on at least one prescription that he had verified it directly with the prescriber. A federal judge approved the consent decree under which Dankhara and the pharmacy paid a $15,000 civil penalty and agreed to specific red-flag identification and documentation procedures before filling similar prescriptions going forward.

Western Pennsylvania pharmacy owner sentenced in prescription drug fraud scheme

A pharmacist who owned and operated four pharmacies in the Pittsburgh region was sentenced in federal court in May 2022 on convictions for obtaining controlled substances by fraud, misbranding of drugs, and health care fraud conspiracy. The guilty plea was entered in September 2021. The court imposed one year in prison, two years of supervised release, a $10,000 fine, and $649,524 in restitution.

Dearborn physician pleaded guilty to conspiring to distribute hydrocodone without medical necessity

A Dearborn physician pleaded guilty in federal court to conspiracy to distribute controlled substances and agreed to forfeit approximately $37,000 in cash seized from the office. According to court records cited by the U.S. Attorney's Office, the physician admitted prescribing 12,500 dosage units of hydrocodone outside the course of professional practice and without legitimate medical need. Sentencing was set for August 22, 2022.

Pharmacy technician reinstated after taking a controlled substance from a pharmacy for personal use

In an order entered by the executive director on May 3, 2022, a pharmacy technician who applied for reinstatement of registration was recorded as having taken a controlled substance from the pharmacy for personal use on 06/06/2019, conduct tied to a prior board order. The Board granted reinstatement and imposed three years' probation.

Wisconsin Pharmacy Settles Controlled Substance Dispensing and Recordkeeping Violations

Cadott, Wisconsin

Cadott Miller Pharmacy in Cadott, Wisconsin agreed to pay $20,000 to resolve allegations that it dispensed dangerous drug combinations with no legitimate medical purpose, filled prescriptions with no valid Rx on file, and allowed unauthorized early refills. DEA had already served an immediate suspension order in December 2019, and the pharmacy surrendered its registration in January 2020. The settlement was announced April 29, 2022.

Missoula Hospital Nurse Sentenced for Diverting Fentanyl and Hydromorphone

Missoula, Montana

A registered nurse at Community Medical Center in Missoula diverted fentanyl and hydromorphone for her own use over several months. Coworkers grew suspicious after observing her acting furtively near patients, including filling syringes with her back turned and later asking a colleague to witness her disposal of medication vials. When supervisors confronted her, she admitted stealing narcotics and using them; a search of her bag turned up unmarked used syringes and alcohol-swab wrappers, and a urine sample tested positive for fentanyl. She pleaded guilty to unlawfully obtaining controlled substances by fraud, deception, and subterfuge and was sentenced to two years of probation and a $2,000 fine.

Ulster County Dentist Pleads Guilty to Fraudulently Obtaining Oxycodone in a Patient's Name

Stone Ridge, New York

Vivian Letizia, a dentist in Stone Ridge, New York, submitted a fraudulent oxycodone prescription in December 2019 using one of her dental patient's name and date of birth, then filled it at a Woodstock pharmacy for her own consumption while knowing she was not treating that patient. She pleaded guilty in April 2022 and agreed to surrender her medical license and her eligibility for a DEA registration.

Jacksonville Hospital ICU Nurse Pleads Guilty to Tampering With Patients' Fentanyl

Jacksonville, Florida

A registered nurse in the neurological intensive care unit of a Jacksonville hospital removed fentanyl from syringes intended for critically ill ICU patients, replaced it with saline, and reglued tamper-evident caps back onto the syringes with adhesive she obtained from the hospital. A hospital pharmacist discovered a syringe with a damaged cap after her shift and, reviewing dispensing records, found she had checked out and then cancelled fentanyl transactions 24 times in one month, a pattern no other nurse on the unit showed. Confronted the next day, she admitted diverting the drug for personal use since the previous summer; investigators later found needles, saline syringes, and adhesive in her bag. She pleaded guilty to tampering with a consumer product.

DC nurse and nurse practitioner licenses revoked after oxycodone distribution conviction

Washington, DC

On April 8, 2022 the District of Columbia Board of Nursing revoked a licensee's registered nursing and nurse practitioner licenses, adopting a hearing panel's recommended decision of February 10, 2022 as its final order. The discipline rested on a federal conviction for distribution of oxycodone outside the legitimate practice of medicine. The licensee argued that the recommended decision relied on findings and evidence from a criminal proceeding then on appeal to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, and that the contested evidence had previously been made known to the Board's former executive director and board attorney. The Board rejected the argument, holding that under the Health Occupations Revision Act a conviction means a judgment or other admission of guilt, so the U.S. District Court judgment was a sufficient basis for disciplinary action, and that the licensee could pursue relief later if the appeal succeeded.

Prisma Health Midlands Pays $1 Million in Record South Carolina CSA Settlement

Columbia, South Carolina

Prisma Health Midlands agreed to pay a record $1 million, the largest Controlled Substances Act settlement in South Carolina history, after DEA investigators found the hospital system failed to report thefts or significant losses of controlled substances within one business day over a three-year period. The probe began after two Prisma patients were arrested for distributing drugs obtained through the hospital pharmacy. Announced April 5, 2022.

Hilo Medical Center nurse charged with fentanyl theft and drug possession

Hilo, HI

A nurse at Hilo Medical Center was charged with several drug offenses, including felony drug possession, in connection with two incidents in April 2022 at the hospital. According to reports, the charges include two counts of obtaining a controlled substance by fraud, deceit, misrepresentation, embezzlement or theft, and two counts of promoting a dangerous drug involving alleged possession of fentanyl, including one-fourth ounce or more. The nurse appeared in Hilo Circuit Court, where a request for supervised release or a bail reduction was denied and bail was maintained at $55,000; the nurse later posted cash bail and was released. The text describes charges only; no finding or plea is reported.

Worcester County Nursing Home Nurse Pleads Guilty to Tampering With a Dementia Patient's Morphine

Northborough, Massachusetts

A registered nurse employed by a Worcester County, Massachusetts nursing home tampered with a bottle of morphine sulfate prescribed to a resident suffering from dementia, removing some of the drug and diluting the remainder with water during an overnight shift on a dementia care unit. A nurse on a later shift administered the diluted morphine to the patient before the tampering was discovered. She pleaded guilty to tampering with a consumer product and to obtaining a controlled substance by fraud and deception.

Danville Hospital Nurse Sentenced for Tampering with Fentanyl and Hydromorphone

Danville, Virginia

Emilee Kathryn Poteat, a registered nurse at Sovah Health-Danville, diverted fentanyl and hydromorphone from an AcuDose dispensing machine beginning in January 2020, popping the tops off vials and later denying the conduct to investigators twice. She pleaded guilty to tampering with a consumer product and making false statements, and was sentenced in March 2022 to 36 months in federal prison.

Mount Pleasant pharmacy technician charged with stealing OxyContin and Adderall from CVS pharmacy

Mount Pleasant, SC

In March 2022, a pharmacy technician at a CVS Pharmacy on Ben Sawyer Boulevard in Mount Pleasant, SC, allegedly stole tablets of OxyContin and Adderall from the pharmacy. According to DHEC, investigators determined responsibility based on an audit, video evidence, and a confession. The technician was charged with two counts of theft of a controlled substance in August 2023 and was booked into the Al Cannon Detention Center before being released on own recognizance.

Illinois Dentist Charged with Tampering with Patients' Fentanyl

Rochester, Illinois

Phillip Jensen, a Rochester, Illinois dentist, was indicted after allegedly piercing fentanyl vials before surgeries, removing half the drug for personal use, and refilling the vials with another solution before administering the diluted anesthesia to patients between December 2019 and August 2020. He faced eight counts of drug diversion and was arrested February 7, 2022.

Aspirar Pharmacy Pays $100K for Filling Invalid Opioid Prescriptions

Cary / Durham, North Carolina

Aspirar Pharmacy's Cary and Durham, North Carolina locations agreed to pay $100,000 to resolve allegations that from 2017-2018 they filled controlled-substance prescriptions written by a Duke University physician operating outside the scope of her limited faculty license. The pharmacy failed to confirm the validity of the physician's license before dispensing. The settlement was announced February 3, 2022.

North Carolina pharmacy chain paid $100,000 to resolve claims it filled prescriptions from physician on limited license

A pharmacy operating locations in Cary and Durham agreed to pay $100,000 to resolve allegations that it violated the Controlled Substances Act in 2017-2018. The government alleged the pharmacy filled controlled-substance prescriptions written by a physician who held only a faculty limited license and was prescribing outside the scope permitted by the sponsoring university. The allegations included that the pharmacy failed to confirm the validity of the prescriber's license. The settlement resolves allegations only and is not a finding of liability.

Ready Pharmacy Pays $400K Over 26,000 Missing Controlled Substance Units

Albuquerque, New Mexico

Ready Pharmacy, a now-closed Albuquerque, New Mexico retail pharmacy, agreed to pay $400,000 to resolve civil claims that it failed to account for more than 26,000 missing dosage units of controlled substances discovered on March 15, 2016. A DEA on-site inspection also found controlled substances stored unsafeguarded. The settlement was announced February 1, 2022.

Cedar Rapids Surgery Center Nurse Sentenced for Tampering With Fentanyl Vials

Cedar Rapids, Iowa

A registered nurse at a Cedar Rapids outpatient surgery center diverted fentanyl for her own use between August 2018 and August 2019 by removing vial caps, puncturing the septum with a needle to draw out the fentanyl, refilling the vials with saline, and regluing the caps so the vials appeared unopened. She pleaded guilty in July 2021 to acquiring a controlled substance by fraud and to adulterating and misbranding a consumer product with intent to defraud. She was sentenced to five years of probation, fined $10,000, and forfeited her nursing license.

San Diego Pharmacy Pays $105K for Ignoring Opioid Prescription Red Flags

San Diego, California

Balboa Pharmacy in San Diego, California agreed to pay $105,000 to resolve allegations that it filled opioid prescriptions without resolving well-known red flags, including doses exceeding 100 morphine milligram equivalents, dangerous drug combinations, and early refills. The pharmacy also entered a Memorandum of Agreement with DEA in October 2021 to develop red-flag procedures. The settlement was announced January 20, 2022.

DC emergency nurse's diversion surfaced by automated dispensing cabinet audit

Washington, DC

On or about January 8, 2019, Providence Hospital in Washington, DC complained to the Board of Nursing of a suspected controlled substance diversion, after an internal investigation prompted by discrepancies found in the hospital's controlled substance tracking records during a routine pharmaceutical audit. The investigation identified discrepancies in 17 patient accounts, with a total of 32 drug removals, and concluded that the emergency room registered nurse was the nurse who withdrew the medication: for patients she was not assigned to or associated with, without a physician's order, after patients had been discharged and left the hospital, or for fictitious patients. A separate audit at United Medical Center, where the nurse worked later, revealed unauthorized removal of controlled substances for fictitious or already-discharged patients or without a physician's order, and she was terminated there on March 15, 2019. The nurse admitted to a DC Health investigator that she was addicted to oxycodone and tramadol and had diverted narcotics from the hospitals for her own use, and that she failed to cooperate with the Committee on Impaired Nurses. The Board revoked the registered nursing license on January 14, 2022.

Skilled nursing facility registered nurse diverted Ativan tablets from PRN supply for personal use; Vermont license warned

Gwynedd, PA

A registered nurse admitted to diverting Ativan tablets for personal use in 2015 or 2016 by taking them from the PRN supply at Foulkeways at Gwynedd Skilled Nursing Facility. The Vermont Board of Nursing found that the nurse diverted drugs for unauthorized use and failed to exercise independent professional judgment, while allegations of fraudulent or deceptive procurement and conduct likely to deceive, defraud, or harm the public were not proven. The Board warned the nurse's license and imposed no other conditions or sanctions.

Physician pleads guilty to illegally prescribing opioids and falsifying records at a Lake Milton medical office

Lake Milton, OH

A physician pleaded guilty in federal court to illegally distributing controlled substances and health care fraud. According to court documents, between March 2015 and October 2019 he prescribed opioids including oxycodone and hydrocodone, often with benzodiazepines and stimulants, outside the usual course of professional practice and without a legitimate medical purpose from a Lake Milton medical office. He admitted using false diagnoses, falsifying patient pain intensity scales, increasing dosages, and ignoring urine drug screens that suggested abuse and secondary-market sales. He also admitted unlawfully prescribing opioids to two patients who later fatally overdosed and to an individual under 21.

Vermont dental practice employee conspired to forge oxycodone prescriptions

A former employee of a St. Albans dental practice pleaded guilty in federal court to conspiring to acquire controlled substances by fraud and to theft in connection with healthcare. According to court records, between April and November 2016 the employee and a co-worker generated fake prescriptions, typically for oxycodone, forged a licensed prescriber's signature and filled them at several area pharmacies; investigators identified 46 such prescriptions. The employee also embezzled funds from the practice by falsifying billing records. In December 2021 the court imposed five years of probation and ordered restitution of $71,942.60 to the former employer.

Confluence Health Clinic Nurse Tampered with Morphine Vials

Moses Lake, Washington

A registered nurse at Confluence Health Clinic in Moses Lake, Washington used syringes to remove morphine from at least 17 vials over an eight-month period, ingesting the drug as part of her own opioid addiction. She replaced the withdrawn morphine with saline and attempted to glue the vial caps back to make them appear untampered. Before she was caught, at least one patient who was supposed to receive morphine instead got saline and had to be rushed to the emergency room in excruciating pain. She pleaded guilty to tampering with a consumer product, a charge carrying up to 10 years in prison, with sentencing scheduled for 2022.

South Jersey hospital system settles DEA allegations after 400 oxycodone tablets reported lost or stolen

A South Jersey hospital system agreed to pay $150,000 to resolve allegations that it violated the Controlled Substances Act after reporting to the DEA in July 2016 that 400 oxycodone 30 mg tablets had been lost or stolen from a hospital inpatient pharmacy. DEA diversion investigators alleged that from October 2015 through November 2016 the hospital failed to keep an accurate controlled substance inventory, failed to store controlled substances securely, and failed to properly supervise employees with access to them. The claims are allegations only, and the settlement includes no determination of liability.

Contract nurse at Winston-Salem hospital diverted hydromorphone and replaced it with saline

Winston-Salem, NC

A contract registered nurse at Novant Health Forsyth Medical Center in Winston-Salem pleaded guilty in December 2021 to one count of tampering with a consumer product. According to court documents and federal prosecutors, the nurse removed vials of injectable hydromorphone from an automated dispensing cabinet machine, injected the drug into herself, replaced it with saline, used glue to reseal the vials, and returned them to locked drawers. The nurse was sentenced to four years and six months in federal prison, a $3,000 fine, and three years of supervised release; her nursing license is suspended.

Colorado Nurse Sentenced Over Fake Research-Study Hydromorphone Diversion

Colorado

A Colorado registered nurse was sentenced to 12 months in federal prison for using her position to access patients she was not assigned to care for, falsely telling them she was conducting a study on patient-controlled analgesia pumps, then using a key to open the pump's secured hydromorphone syringe and remove a portion of the drug for herself before returning the syringe to circulation.

DC nurse diverted oxycodone from a rehabilitation hospital

Washington, DC

A registered nurse employed at MedStar National Rehabilitation Hospital in Washington, DC from 2011 until 2018 diverted oxycodone IR between July 2017 and January 2018 by withdrawing more of the medication than was prescribed for patients and entering false information into the system to conceal the diversion. The nurse told the hospital the drug was taken for an abusive partner and father of her children. A fitness-for-duty examination including a drug screening in January 2018 was negative. The hospital, after confirming the diversion through an internal investigation, placed her in a domestic violence treatment program under an agreement that she would resign on completing it; she resigned on May 29, 2018. The Board of Nursing charged willfully filing a false record in the practice of nursing and failing to conform to professional standards of conduct, and on November 23, 2021 revoked the registered nursing license.

VA Medical Center Pharmacy Chief Diverted Painkillers from Veterans' Prescriptions

Erie, Pennsylvania

The Pharmacy Chief at the Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Erie, Pennsylvania unlawfully obtained hydrocodone and oxycodone from pill bottles that were awaiting delivery to VA patients. The diversion took place over more than three years, from January 2017 to June 2020, while he held the top pharmacy leadership role at the facility. He pleaded guilty to a federal drug-law violation, with sentencing scheduled for 2022 and a maximum exposure of four years in prison and a $250,000 fine.

Ann Arbor VA Nurse Anesthetist Stole 2,000+ Vials of Opioids

Ann Arbor, Michigan

Elizabeth Prophitt, a certified registered nurse anesthetist, used her position as a surgical nurse to steal more than 2,000 vials of fentanyl, hydromorphone, morphine, and midazolam from hospital dispensing machines at the Ann Arbor VA hospital, using protected patient information and falsified medical documents to justify the withdrawals. She pleaded guilty to five counts of obtaining controlled substances by fraud and was sentenced in November 2021 to three years of probation.

Pharmacy technician surrendered registration after admitted theft of controlled substances from Walgreens pharmacy

Gulfport, MS

According to a Mississippi Board of Pharmacy order, a pharmacy technician admitted to theft of controlled substances from the Walgreens pharmacy where the technician worked. The Board found the technician committed the violation as charged and accepted the voluntary surrender of the pharmacy technician registration. The registration was revoked, and the technician was ordered to pay $150.00 in investigation costs.

Pharmacy technician surrendered registration after admitting to ingesting THC-infused chocolate while working at Kroger pharmacy

Brandon, MS

According to a Mississippi Board of Pharmacy order, a pharmacy technician admitted to ingesting chocolate infused with THC while working at Kroger Pharmacy #493 in Brandon, MS. The Board found the technician committed the violation as charged and accepted the voluntary surrender of the pharmacy technician registration. The registration was revoked, and the technician may petition for reinstatement after at least one year.

Pharmacy technician took controlled substances from a pharmacy

A default board order from the Texas State Board of Pharmacy states that a registered pharmacy technician took controlled substances from the pharmacy. The board revoked the technician's registration. The violation date is listed as November 30, 2020.

Colorado Nurse Stole Fentanyl in Hospital Catheterization Lab

Colorado

Kurt Vasquez, a contract advanced nurse practitioner and registered nurse placed in a hospital catheterization lab in summer 2019, obtained more fentanyl, midazolam, and propofol than scheduled procedures required and kept the excess for personal use between June and September 2019. He falsely documented in patient charts that he had administered drugs he had not given, and on some occasions used filled syringes himself before falsely claiming they had been used on a patient. He was sentenced in September 2021 to three months in federal prison.

Carterville Nurse Diverted Hydrocodone at Disability Care Center

Carterville, Illinois

A nurse employed at Progress Port, a residential care center for adults with intellectual disabilities in Williamson County, Illinois, obtained 25 hydrocodone pills he falsely claimed to have dispensed to a resident and diverted them for his own use. He also took hydrocodone pills intended for the same resident and replaced them with over-the-counter Tylenol on three separate occasions, then billed Medicare for the diverted medication. He was sentenced on felony drug diversion and health care fraud charges to four years of probation, a $500 fine, and a $200 special assessment.

South Dakota pharmacy technician diverted medications from employer pharmacy

Sioux Falls, South Dakota

A registered pharmacy technician in Sioux Falls pleaded guilty to Misrepresentation to Obtain a Controlled Substance, a class 4 felony, for diverting medications from the pharmacy where she worked. The South Dakota Board of Pharmacy accepted the voluntary surrender of her technician registration effective September 16, 2021. The board's disciplinary report does not specify the drug or the quantity diverted.

DC nurse license stays suspended after fentanyl and oxycodone relapse

Washington, DC

A registered nurse at George Washington University Hospital was suspended by the hospital on or about March 15, 2018 over suspected diversion and resigned in April 2018. The nurse referred herself to the Board of Nursing, applied to the Committee on Impaired Nurses in May 2018 and entered a three-year monitoring agreement. The monitoring record shows compliance in 2019 but relapses in June 2018 and again in approximately March 2020, when the nurse began using fentanyl and oxycodone. The relapse and a missed hair-sample collection in August 2020 violated the agreement; a new agreement was offered, and the nurse did not complete a further scheduled collection on November 24, 2020, leading the Committee to expel her on December 22, 2020. The Board's final order of September 1, 2021 adopted the hearing panel's recommended decision: the license remains suspended until the nurse establishes sustained abstinence and full recovery through a new monitoring agreement and satisfies the Board that she is competent to practice safely, and the Board will enter a revocation order if a new agreement is not executed within 60 days.

Southeast Missouri medical center paid $1.6 million to resolve invalid opioid prescribing claims

Saint Francis Medical Center of Southeast Missouri agreed to pay $1,624,957.67 to settle a federal civil suit under the Controlled Substances Act. The government alleged that a physician it employed wrote prescriptions for opioids without a legitimate medical purpose while ignoring warning signs of diversion or misuse, such as aberrant urine drug test results. The settlement resolves the claims and is not a finding of liability; the medical center cooperated with the investigation and agreed to keep cooperating regarding individuals not released by the agreement.

Florida emergency room nurse accused of diverting hydromorphone after syringes found in work bag; probable cause panel dismissed case

A registered nurse working in a Florida hospital emergency room was accused of diverting hydromorphone after a co-worker reported seeing syringes in the nurse's work bag and a search turned up two mostly empty pre-drawn 1 mg hydromorphone syringes. The nurse stated the syringes were leftover from administered doses that had not been wasted, and a drug test was negative, but the hospital reported the nurse to the Florida Department of Health, which issued a letter of intent alleging diversion, malpractice and unprofessional conduct. The matter was presented to a probable cause panel, which found no probable cause and dismissed the case without a finding.

Two Colorado nurses held accountable for taking controlled substances from patients

In two separate federal cases, the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Colorado held nurses accountable after, according to the office, they took controlled substances from their patients. The cases were investigated by the FDA Office of Criminal Investigations and the DEA. The release does not specify the drugs involved or the individual sentences.

Sentara Norfolk Pharmacy Technician Stole 50,000+ Controlled Substance Units

Norfolk, Virginia

A licensed pharmacy technician at Sentara Norfolk General Hospital was responsible for restocking the hospital's automated medication dispensing/monitoring system with controlled substances. From April 2018 to October 2019 he stole controlled substances, including thousands of opioid pills, and falsified the system's records to cover his theft. He avoided camera systems, intercepted daily audit reports that would have exposed the diversion, and swapped in reports from cabinets he had not accessed. The scheme was uncovered by the supervising pharmacist and a technician while he was on personal leave. He pleaded guilty to acquiring more than 50,000 dosage units of controlled substances through fraud, facing up to four years in prison.

South Dakota hospital nurse convicted of tampering with fentanyl vials and replacing contents with saline

Chamberlain, SD

A registered nurse at a hospital in Chamberlain, South Dakota, tampered with a vial of fentanyl citrate for injection by removing the fentanyl and replacing the majority of it with saline solution, then returned the tampered vial to storage. The nurse pleaded guilty and was convicted of obtaining a controlled substance by misrepresentation, fraud, forgery, deception, and subterfuge. The nurse was sentenced to two years of probation and a $100 special assessment. The incidents occurred between June 19, 2021, and September 11, 2021.

Registered pharmacy technician took controlled substances from a pharmacy for purposes of sale

A registered pharmacy technician took controlled substances from a pharmacy for purposes of sale, according to an agreed board order. The board imposed a 30-day suspension and 5 years probation.

Registered pharmacy technician took controlled substances from a pharmacy for use by a family member

A registered pharmacy technician took controlled substances from a pharmacy for use by a family member, according to a default board order. The board revoked the registration.

Intermountain Healthcare Nurse Tampered with Hydromorphone Syringes

Salt Lake City, Utah

A nurse on a surgical and trauma ward at an Intermountain Healthcare facility diverted hydromorphone from pre-loaded syringes for his own use, replaced it with saline, and returned the syringes — now containing greatly reduced amounts of the pain medication — to circulation for use by other hospital staff on patients. Hospital staff reported his activity to federal law enforcement, and he was also convicted of lying to an FDA special agent about his conduct during the investigation. A federal jury convicted him on three counts related to fraudulently obtaining and tampering with hydromorphone, with sentencing scheduled to follow.

Hospital nurse convicted of diverting hydromorphone from pre-loaded syringes and replacing it with saline

Sandy, UT

A former nurse at Intermountain Healthcare was convicted by a federal jury of stealing narcotics from a surgical and trauma ward and replacing painkillers with saline in syringes intended for other hospital staff. Prosecutors said the nurse diverted hydromorphone from pre-loaded syringes for personal use, replaced the pain medication with saline solution, and returned the syringes containing greatly reduced amounts of hydromorphone for medical use by other staff. The nurse was convicted of three counts related to fraudulently obtaining and tampering with hydromorphone, a Schedule II opioid, and of making false statements to an FDA special agent during the investigation.

Pain clinic physician pleaded guilty to operating a pill mill and selling oxycodone for kickbacks

Columbus, OH

A former physician pleaded guilty on July 15, 2021 to operating a pill mill out of his Columbus pain practice for more than seven years and selling oxycodone in exchange for financial kickbacks. He also staged a break-in at the practice to support a fraudulent insurance claim. He was sentenced to five years on probation, fined $5,000, ordered to forfeit more than $524,000 in proceeds, and required to surrender his medical license and DEA registration.

Massachusetts ER Nurse Tampered with Hydromorphone and Meperidine

West Boylston, Massachusetts

A nurse working in a Massachusetts hospital emergency department used his credentials to enter false 'cancel' and 'return to stock' transactions in the automated dispensing machine, allowing him to remove carpujects (syringe devices) containing hydromorphone and meperidine intended for patients in pain. He punctured the carpujects to withdraw the drugs for his own use, then refilled several with saline and returned them to the machine, where they remained available for other nurses to unknowingly administer to patients. He had previously agreed not to practice nursing after being terminated from a prior job but did not disclose that to his new employer. He pleaded guilty to tampering with a consumer product and acquiring a controlled substance by deception, and was sentenced to one year and one day in prison, with the first year in home confinement, plus three years of supervised release.

Nurse Tampered with Fentanyl Vials at Yale Fertility Clinic

Orange, Connecticut

Donna Monticone, a nurse who ordered and inventoried narcotics at the Yale fertility clinic, began stealing fentanyl for personal use in June 2020 and replaced the drug in vials with saline before returning them to stock. About 75 percent of the fentanyl given to patients that summer was found adulterated.

Nurse Arrested for Stealing 1,400+ Vials of Fentanyl from Long Island Hospital

Manhasset, New York

Melissa Frame, a nurse at North Shore University Hospital in Manhasset, New York, allegedly used her fingerprint to access a medication dispensing machine more than 50 times between October and December 2020, stealing 1,467 vials of fentanyl and 223 vials of midazolam. She falsified patient names against the withdrawals and was arrested and charged in May 2021.

Minnesota pharmacist caught on video pocketing amphetamines; suspension stayed with monitoring

Pharmacy video surveillance showed a Minnesota pharmacist placing Schedule II controlled substances into clothing pockets on four dates in June and July 2019. The pharmacist admitted removing amphetamines one to two times a week since January 2019 for personal use, about 60 to 80 tablets in total, and using them while on duty. After a chemical use assessment and a voluntary agreement to cease practice, the Board of Pharmacy in May 2021 suspended the license but stayed the suspension on conditions including monitoring through the state health professionals program and abstinence from mood-altering chemicals.

Minnesota pharmacy technician took oxycodone from filled patient prescriptions; registration surrendered

A review of pharmacy video surveillance in January 2021 showed a Minnesota pharmacy technician opening a filled prescription bag in the will-call area, pouring tablets from the vial into her hand and placing them in her pocket. When confronted by a loss prevention manager, the technician admitted stealing the pills, turned over ten oxycodone tablets, and later estimated to local law enforcement that she had taken prescription pills from patients on about ten occasions to treat her own pain. The Board of Pharmacy accepted the voluntary surrender of her registration at its May 2021 meeting.

Dothan Pharmacy Owner Sentenced for Selling Opioids Without Prescriptions

Dothan, Alabama

A licensed pharmacist owned and operated Allen's Pharmacy in Dothan, Alabama, where he personally sold Schedule II controlled substances directly to customers for cash instead of dispensing them against valid prescriptions. The Dothan Police Department opened an investigation after an anonymous tip that someone was selling prescription medications out of the pharmacy without a prescription, and DEA agents confirmed the pharmacist was selling oxycodone and hydrocodone outside any legitimate dispensing process. He was indicted by a federal grand jury in July 2020 and pleaded guilty in January 2021, specifically admitting to selling 14 hydrocodone pills to an individual for cash without a prescription. He was sentenced to 87 months in federal prison and three years of supervised release.

Fontana pharmacy technician's registration revoked over diversion of 117 tramadol tablets

The California Board of Pharmacy revoked a pharmacy technician's registration after an administrative law judge found, by a preponderance of the evidence, that the technician diverted 117 tramadol 50 mg tablets from her employer over several days in May. The pharmacist-in-charge had reported the loss to the Board as suspected employee theft. An interim suspension order issued in December 2020 was a temporary measure pending the hearing; the revocation decision was adopted on April 26, 2021 and took effect May 26, 2021.

Nursing Home Employees Sentenced for Stealing and Reselling Patients' Alprazolam

Brunswick, Georgia

Rochella Ellison, a guest services representative, and Nadia Gibson, a licensed practical nurse, worked together at a Brunswick, Georgia nursing and personal care facility to steal alprazolam from patient supplies and resell it for profit between December 2019 and early 2020. Both pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute the drug and were sentenced to probation in April 2021.

Lowell Nursing Home Nurse Diverted Hospice Patients' Liquid Morphine

Lowell, Massachusetts

A registered nurse at a Lowell, Massachusetts nursing home tampered with bottles of liquid morphine prescribed to two elderly hospice patients under his care, taking the morphine for his own use and replacing it with saline or Benadryl to conceal the theft. In a separate incident at a Melrose nursing home, he diverted liquid morphine from a hospice patient's bottle and falsely recorded in the patient's medical file and the Medication Administration Record that the morphine was undiluted. He pleaded guilty to tampering with a consumer product and acquiring a controlled substance by deception, and was sentenced to 42 months in prison and three years of supervised release.

Westfield Nursing Facility Nurse Diluted Hospice Patient's Morphine

Westfield, Massachusetts

A nurse at Governor's Center, a nursing facility in Westfield, Massachusetts, tampered with a bottle of morphine prescribed to a hospice patient by removing some of the morphine and diluting the remainder with another substance. The patient received diluted doses of her prescribed pain medication in the days shortly before her death. After ingesting the diverted morphine, the nurse was observed to be significantly impaired while providing patient care at the facility. She pleaded guilty to tampering with a consumer product, a charge carrying up to 10 years in prison, with sentencing scheduled for June 2021.

Roswell Park Cancer Center Nurse Tampered with Patients' Hydromorphone

Buffalo, New York

Kelsey Mulvey, a registered nurse at Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center, tampered with and stole hydromorphone from medication dispensing machines between February and June 2018, canceling transactions to leave drawers open, removing the drug, and replacing it with water before returning vials to the machine. Her tampering caused a spate of waterborne bacterial infections that sickened six cancer patients between June and July 2018, with lab testing finding some vials had roughly 80 percent of their hydromorphone removed and replaced with contaminated water. She pleaded guilty in March 2021 to tampering with a consumer product.

Registered nurse accused of diverting controlled substances from Wisconsin health care facilities

Waukesha, WI

A registered nurse employed at multiple Wisconsin health care facilities was accused of diverting controlled substances for personal use and repeatedly performing improper administration and wasting of controlled substances. Complaints also alleged obtaining and ingesting steroids without a prescription, stealing saline syringes, impairment at work, and failed reasonable suspicion drug tests. The nurse neither admitted nor denied the allegations, and no Board determination on violations had been made. Under an interim order, the nurse's Wisconsin license was suspended pending investigation and final resolution, and the nurse voluntarily agreed not to practice in Wisconsin or under multistate privileges.

Connecticut fertility clinic nurse replaced fentanyl with saline, leaving patients in pain

A nurse at a Connecticut fertility clinic pleaded guilty in March 2021 to tampering with a consumer product after court records showed she had been stealing fentanyl from the clinic's supply for months in 2020. Investigators said she drained fentanyl vials for her own use, refilled them with saline, and returned them to the clinic shelves. Attorneys for patients said at least 95 fertility patients received saline instead of pain medication during procedures such as egg retrieval.

Meriden pharmacy settled after DEA audit found 2,000-tablet controlled substance shortage

A Meriden pharmacy and its owner entered into a civil settlement with the federal government to resolve allegations of Controlled Substances Act violations. A 2018 DEA audit found a shortage of more than 2,000 tablets of various controlled substances, and the government alleged failures in recordkeeping, controls against diversion, timely theft or loss reporting, biennial inventory, and order form completion. The pharmacy agreed to pay $16,800 plus interest and to hire an independent third-party pharmacy consultant under a memorandum of agreement with the DEA. The settlement is not a finding of liability.

VA Hospice Nurse Sentenced for Diluting Dying Veterans' Morphine

Bedford, Massachusetts

Kathleen Noftle, a nurse in the hospice unit at the VA Medical Center campus in Bedford, Massachusetts, used her position over three days in January 2017 to obtain morphine doses meant for veterans under her care, mixing tap water into the liquid morphine before administering the diluted medication to patients and drinking the diverted portion herself. She pleaded guilty in October 2020 to tampering with a consumer product and obtaining a controlled substance by fraud, and was sentenced in February 2021 to 40 months in federal prison.

Former pharmacist-in-charge and three others charged in Warren County oxycodone diversion scheme

State and federal authorities announced the arrests of four people, including a pharmacy's former pharmacist-in-charge, on charges they conspired to illegally obtain and distribute oxycodone and promethazine out of a Warren County pharmacy between April 2018 and October 2019. Prosecutors allege more than 30,000 high-dose oxycodone tablets were diverted using falsified prescriptions written on blanks stolen from two hospitals, and that the pharmacist agreed to fill the illegitimate prescriptions in exchange for payment. The charges are accusations only; the pharmacist had earlier entered a consent order voluntarily surrendering her license, deemed a temporary suspension pending further Board action.

Assisted living facility nurse diverted Vicodin from a resident for personal use

Sturgeon Bay, WI

The Board of Nursing found that a registered nurse diverted Vicodin from a resident at an assisted living facility in Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin, on April 30 and May 1, 2019, for personal use. The nurse admitted having a substance abuse problem at the time of the diversion and was diagnosed with opioid and stimulant use disorders. The Board suspended the nurse’s license indefinitely, subject to possible stay upon compliance with treatment, drug testing, and practice restrictions.

Oklahoma physician, pharmacist and clinic owner sentenced over pre-signed prescription scheme

A federal grand jury indicted a physician, a pharmacist and a clinic owner in June 2018 on 103 counts related to dispensing controlled substances using invalid prescriptions and billing Medicare for them. According to the indictment, from September through December 2015 the physician supplied pre-signed blank prescription pads and the clinic owner supplied patient records, which the pharmacist allegedly used to prepare invalid refills for opioids including hydrocodone, morphine and fentanyl. All three pleaded guilty and were sentenced to probation in January and February 2021, with the physician and pharmacist agreeing to surrender their Oklahoma licenses.

Warren County pharmacy: former pharmacist-in-charge and hospital pharmacy technician charged in alleged oxycodone diversion scheme

The New Jersey Attorney General announced that four people, including the former pharmacist-in-charge of a Warren County retail pharmacy, were arrested on charges that they conspired to obtain and distribute oxycodone and promethazine using falsified prescriptions. Prosecutors allege that, based on prescription records, more than 30,000 high-dose 30 milligram oxycodone tablets were diverted from the pharmacy between April 2018 and about October 2019. A pharmacy technician at a Paterson hospital is accused of stealing the prescription blanks used to create the falsified prescriptions. The charges are allegations; the pharmacist had earlier surrendered her license under a consent order treated as a temporary suspension pending further board action.

Roanoke Pharmacist Sentenced for Tampering with Hydromorphone Vials

Roanoke, Virginia

Bryan Wade Lewis, a pharmacist at Home Choice Partners in Roanoke, Virginia, admitted replacing hydromorphone in a narcotics-cabinet vial with saline over a nine-month period, diverting medication meant for cancer and hospice patients. He pleaded guilty to tampering with a consumer product and was sentenced in January 2021 to 12 months and one day in federal prison.

Michigan hospital network paid $7.75 million to settle allegations its pharmacies enabled opioid diversion

McLaren Health Care Corporation agreed to pay $7.75 million to resolve claims that some of its pharmacies mishandled controlled substances for years and allowed them to reach the wrong hands. Federal prosecutors alleged that a subsidiary pharmacy filled prescriptions for an unregistered substance abuse treatment facility, that pharmacies ignored red flags in prescriptions, that the corporation failed to notify DEA of known employee thefts, and that a pharmacist at a Port Huron retail pharmacy diverted opioids for personal use and was terminated in 2018. Prosecutors called it the largest civil Controlled Substances Act settlement involving a health care system at the time. A settlement resolves allegations and is not a finding of liability.

Rural Pennsylvania hospital pharmacy technician charged after 2,100 oxycodone tablets went missing

A pharmacy technician was charged following an investigation by an agent of the Pennsylvania Attorney General's Office into altered narcotic counts at a hospital pharmacy. The affidavit of probable cause alleges that on nine occasions across January, February and March, incoming oxycodone orders were logged at lower quantities than the invoices showed, with the invoices missing from pharmacy records, leaving 2,100 tablets unaccounted for. The charges include nine felony counts of acquiring a controlled substance by misrepresentation and related misdemeanors. These are allegations, and the account reports only that a preliminary hearing was scheduled.

Rawlins physician sentenced federally for dispensing medically unnecessary controlled substances

Rawlins, WY

A physician practicing in Rawlins, Wyoming, pleaded guilty in February to 20 counts of dispensing medically unnecessary controlled substances, including oxycodone, alprazolam, hydrocodone and tramadol. At a December sentencing hearing, prosecutors said some of the patients were addicts or became addicted, some sold the drugs, four patients died from overdoses, and that the physician sometimes traded drugs for sexual favors. The federal court sentenced him to 20 concurrent five-year prison terms, followed by six years of supervised release, a $2,000 special assessment and $400 in restitution. The state board of medicine had suspended his licence in 2017.

Former Ennis pharmacist pleaded guilty to opioid distribution and was sentenced to prison and fined

A pharmacist in Ennis pleaded guilty in federal court to opioid distribution, with the U.S. Attorney stating that the case involved a licensed provider abusing his position to divert and steal opioids. A later release reported that the former pharmacist was sentenced to prison and fined. The available excerpts do not state the length of the sentence, the fine amount, the specific drugs or how the conduct was detected.

Southwest Michigan nurse summarily suspended over alleged fentanyl-for-saline substitution

On October 28, 2020, Michigan's Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs served an order summarily suspending the license of a southwest Michigan registered nurse and filed an administrative complaint. The complaint alleges the nurse diverted fentanyl from the workplace and replaced it with saline to conceal the thefts, putting numerous patients at risk of receiving saline instead of fentanyl for pain control. The summary suspension is a temporary protective measure and not a final determination of a Public Health Code violation.

Maui physician charged with unlawful distribution of hydrocodone after undercover visits

A Wailuku physician was charged by a federal criminal complaint, unsealed in October 2020, with six counts of unlawfully distributing hydrocodone. According to the affidavit, an undercover DEA agent posing as a new patient received a hydrocodone prescription at each of six visits between December 2018 and May 2019 after little or no examination. Prosecutors allege the medical records contained false information about the visits. The complaint contains allegations only, and each count carries a statutory maximum of 20 years in prison.

Nursing Home Nurse Pleads Guilty to Tampering with Hospice Patient's Oxycodone

Dighton, Massachusetts

A registered nurse at Dighton Care and Rehabilitation Center tampered with three blister-card packages of oxycodone prescribed to an 89-year-old hospice patient with Alzheimer's, severe dementia, and breast cancer. She removed the oxycodone and replaced it with other prescription pills disguised to look identical, depriving the patient of her prescribed pain medication for over a month and causing her to ingest at least 77 unnecessary tablets. The scheme was uncovered through an investigation involving the FDA and HHS-OIG. She pleaded guilty in federal court in Boston to tampering with a consumer product.

Minnesota pharmacy technician shorted patient prescriptions of oxycodone-acetaminophen; registration revoked

In or around September 2018, a Minnesota pharmacy technician diverted controlled substances from the pharmacy where she worked, at least twice by removing tablets from prescription vials already filled for patients, so those patients did not receive their full prescribed quantity of oxycodone-acetaminophen. The technician met with the pharmacy's asset protection manager and signed a handwritten statement admitting to stealing Schedule II medications. The pharmacy attributed the loss of 167 tablets to her, and the Board of Pharmacy revoked her registration at its October 2020 meeting.

Paramedic Stole and Diluted Ambulance Fentanyl and Hydromorphone

Carthage / Mount Vernon, Missouri

James Poole, an EMT with Mercy Medical Center's Carthage and Mount Vernon, Missouri EMS operations, tampered with dozens of fentanyl and hydromorphone vials stocked on ambulances and in office supply, replacing part of the contents with saline or water. He was caught after paramedics noticed puncture marks and low fluid levels in vials; lab testing found 26 fentanyl and 43 hydromorphone vials at one facility alone had been adulterated, and Poole tested positive for a fentanyl metabolite and admitted diverting a 50mcg dose from a patient he had under-dosed. He pleaded guilty in September 2020 to tampering with a consumer product.

New York Psychiatrist Pleads Guilty to Diverting Medication Using Patient's Children's Identities

Clifton Park, New York

A psychiatrist and addiction-medicine physician with a practice in Clifton Park, New York prescribed methylphenidate (generic Ritalin) to a patient with the arrangement that the patient would kick back part of each filled prescription to him for his own use. To obtain more of the drug, he fraudulently used the names and birthdates of that patient's children to issue additional methylphenidate prescriptions in their identities, which the patient then picked up and split with him. He pleaded guilty to distributing controlled substances outside the course of professional practice and to misusing personal identifying information, and separately settled civil claims over improper ketamine prescribing and recordkeeping failures at his practice.

Buffalo-Area Medical Office Manager Sentenced for Stealing Controlled Substances via Forged Prescriptions

Buffalo, New York

An office manager for a Williamsville, New York physician's practice used her access to the physician's prescription pad and state-issued electronic prescribing credential to issue 166 fraudulent prescriptions for hydrocodone and oxycodone — totaling roughly 11,885 dosage units — without the physician's knowledge. The prescriptions were written in her own name, associates' names, and fictitious patients, and she filled them at local pharmacies for personal use. The scheme unraveled when a Rite Aid pharmacist questioned a prescription's legitimacy and called the physician directly. She was convicted of obtaining a controlled substance by fraud and sentenced to probation and restitution.

Nurse Sentenced to 5 Years for Tampering with Hospice Patient's Morphine

Danvers / Amesbury, Massachusetts

Brianna Duffy tampered with morphine prescribed to an 89-year-old hospice patient on March 17-18, 2019, diluting it to just 26% of the prescribed concentration by replacing the withdrawn drug with another liquid. She was sentenced in 2020 to five years in federal prison.

Minnesota pharmacist-in-charge reprimanded after technician diverted over 18,000 doses of controlled substances

While a Minnesota pharmacist served as pharmacist-in-charge, a pharmacy technician diverted various controlled substances. The DEA loss report listed shortages of twenty-five different controlled substances totaling 18,269 tablets and capsules and 143 ml of liquids and injectables, and a large quantity of gabapentin was also missing. The Board of Pharmacy found the pharmacist-in-charge had given the technician full control of the controlled substance inventory with no separation of duties or pharmacist verification, and in September 2020 it reprimanded her and barred her from serving as pharmacist-in-charge.

Montana Pharmacist Pleads Guilty to Filling Fraudulent Opioid Prescriptions for Himself

Ennis, Montana

The pharmacist-in-charge at Ennis Pharmacy in Montana filled hydrocodone prescriptions for himself under a doctor's name and signature without that doctor ever authorizing or seeing him as a patient. He also altered a friend's legitimate prescription to double the strength and nearly triple the pill count before filling it himself and mailing the drugs out of state. A routine DEA administrative inspection of the pharmacy uncovered the scheme. He pleaded guilty to dispensing a controlled substance by a practitioner and obtaining a controlled substance by fraud; in a separate civil case, Ennis Pharmacy itself agreed to pay a $125,000 fine and overhaul its operating procedures.

Walgreens pharmacy technician diverted Norco 10 and Norco 7.5

A pharmacy technician was alleged to have committed theft or embezzlement of prescription drugs and controlled substances from a permitted facility. The technician admitted to taking Norco 10 and Norco 7.5 from the Walgreens pharmacy where she worked, and the board found the violation as charged. The board accepted the voluntary surrender of her registration, revoked it, and imposed $250 in investigation costs.

Walgreens pharmacist diverted Adderall and Allegra D

McComb, MS

A pharmacist was alleged to have committed theft or embezzlement of prescription drugs and controlled substances from a permitted facility. The pharmacist admitted to taking Adderall and Allegra D from the Walgreens pharmacy in McComb, MS where she worked, and the board found the violation as charged. The board accepted the voluntary surrender of her license, revoked it, and imposed $750 in investigation costs.

Pharmacy technician diverted OxyContin from AccuDose machines at Baptist Medical Center

A pharmacy technician was alleged to have committed theft or embezzlement of prescription drugs and controlled substances from a permitted facility. The technician admitted to taking OxyContin from the AccuDose machines at Baptist Medical Center, and the board found the violation as charged. The board accepted the voluntary surrender of her registration, revoked it, and imposed $250 in investigation costs.

Pharmacy technician diverted Norco, Percocet, and MS Contin from Magee General Hospital pharmacy

A pharmacy technician was alleged to have committed theft or embezzlement of prescription drugs and controlled substances from a permitted facility. The technician admitted to taking Norco, Percocet and MS Contin from the pharmacy at Magee General Hospital where she worked, and the board found the violation as charged. The board accepted the voluntary surrender of her registration, revoked it, and imposed $350 in investigation costs.

Eastern Iowa ICU Nurse Sentenced for Stealing Patient's Fentanyl and Morphine

Cedar Rapids, Iowa

Kelly Kristin Postel, an ICU nurse at a Cedar Rapids, Iowa hospital, obtained excess fentanyl and morphine from the hospital pharmacy for patients between October and December 2018, administered only the prescribed amount, and kept the remainder for her own use while still on duty. On December 10, 2018, she withdrew pain medication directly from an unconscious patient's IV line in the ICU. She pleaded guilty in February 2020 to acquiring controlled substances and was sentenced in June 2020 to federal prison.

ICU Nurse Steals Fentanyl IV Bags at Research Medical Center

Kansas City, Missouri

Julie Lynne Grant, an ICU nurse at Research Medical Center, ordered a compounded fentanyl IV bag on April 4, 2019, falsely telling the pharmacy a patient's bag had run dry. A pharmacist grew suspicious, and Grant admitted extracting the fentanyl and refilling the bag with an unknown liquid.

South Dakota ICU nurse's lawsuit over termination for fentanyl discrepancies rejected on appeal

A hospital terminated an intensive care unit nurse in March 2016 after an internal review, prompted by an automated dispensing cabinet report showing an atypically high fentanyl removal rate, found documentation errors and small quantities of fentanyl, lorazepam and hydromorphone that could not be accounted for. The nurse denied any wrongdoing and sued for wrongful discharge, breach of contract and defamation. The circuit court granted summary judgment to the hospital, and the South Dakota Supreme Court affirmed in June 2020. The opinion excerpt records no criminal charge or board finding of diversion.

South Dakota ICU nurse fired after fentanyl accountability review; wrongful-discharge suit fails on appeal

A hospital's automated dispensing cabinet reports flagged an intensive care nurse for an atypically high fentanyl removal rate over a one-year period, and a chart review found small quantities of fentanyl, lorazepam and hydromorphone that could not be accounted for along with scanning omissions. The nurse denied any use, sale or diversion of drugs, and a same-day urinalysis was reportedly negative; the hospital terminated her and reported suspected diversion to state and federal agencies, none of which took disciplinary action beyond a confidential letter of concern from the Board of Nursing. She sued for wrongful discharge, breach of contract and defamation, and in June 2020 the South Dakota Supreme Court affirmed summary judgment for the hospital, holding that she was an at-will employee and that the reports of suspected diversion were privileged. The opinion records suspicion and documentation failures, not a finding that diversion occurred.

Savage Family Pharmacy Pays $180,480 to Settle Controlled Substances Act Recordkeeping Violations

Waynesboro, Pennsylvania

Savage Family Pharmacy in Waynesboro, Pennsylvania agreed to pay $180,480 in civil penalties after the DEA alleged the pharmacy failed to comply with Controlled Substances Act recordkeeping requirements between 2015 and 2019. Investigators found inventories were not reconciled with the pharmacy's perpetual log, incoming and dispensed counts had been altered, and pages of the perpetual log had been removed, allowing tens of thousands of doses of oxycodone and hydrocodone to go unaccounted for and potentially diverted. The civil investigation was triggered by an act of employee theft of controlled substances at the pharmacy in May 2019. The pharmacy has since overhauled its inventory-reconciliation practices.

Virginia Rite Aid Pharmacist Pleads Guilty to Filling Fraudulent Prescriptions in Pets' Names

Saltville, Virginia

A pharmacist at a Rite Aid in Saltville, Virginia filled approximately 47 controlled-substance prescriptions written in the names of five dogs belonging to his girlfriend, who operated a veterinary clinic, diverting the drugs for his own personal use. A DEA review of the state prescription monitoring program found the pattern, including seven prescriptions filled after one of the dogs had already been euthanized, and records showed many of the underlying prescriptions had been altered or were photocopies of earlier scripts. He pleaded guilty in federal court to obtaining drugs by fraud and using another person's DEA registration number to acquire a controlled substance.

ICU nurse at a Sioux Falls hospital accused of diverting fentanyl, lorazepam and hydromorphone after medication records review

Sioux Falls, SD

A registered nurse in a hospital intensive care unit was terminated in 2016 after a medication log review showed an atypically high rate of fentanyl removal and documentation errors, including unaccounted amounts of fentanyl, lorazepam (Ativan) and hydromorphone and 66 of 669 medications not scanned as given to a patient or wasted. The nurse denied wrongdoing and sued the hospital for wrongful discharge, breach of contract and defamation. The South Dakota Supreme Court upheld summary judgment for the hospital, finding no evidence it recklessly disregarded the truth when it reported the suspected drug diversion; the Board of Nursing investigated and ordered counseling, and other agencies reported to took no action.

West Hartford long-term care pharmacy settled after alprazolam loss and 22,000-dose discrepancy

A West Hartford pharmacy that serves long-term care and assisted living facilities entered into a civil settlement with the federal government, agreeing to pay a $150,000 penalty to resolve Controlled Substances Act allegations. The DEA began investigating in October 2018 after the pharmacy reported a loss of more than 6,000 dosage units of alprazolam 2mg, and an internal investigation indicated employee theft likely contributed. A subsequent DEA audit found a total discrepancy of more than 22,000 doses, which the government attributed in part to lax controls against diversion and inaccurate inventories. The settlement resolves allegations without a finding of liability.

CRNA Tampered with Fentanyl Vials at Charles City Hospital

Charles City, Iowa

From February to September 2018, Christopher Scott West used his nursing licenses to divert fentanyl and sufentanil intended for patients at the hospital's surgery and birthing centers, perforating vial seals and refilling them with saline. He was sentenced in 2020 to 34 months in federal prison.

VA Urgent Care Nurse Pleads Guilty to Stealing Hydromorphone

Pineville, Louisiana

Jolie King, a registered nurse at the VA Medical Center Urgent Care Clinic in Pineville, Louisiana, used her access to the clinic's narcotics supply cabinet to log in under randomly selected patients' names and withdraw hydromorphone vials without a physician's order, keeping the drug for personal use. In at least one instance she refilled two emptied vials with saline to avoid detection. She pleaded guilty in May 2020 to fraudulently obtaining a controlled substance.

Nurse accused of diverting fentanyl and hydromorphone at Danville hospital

Danville, VA

According to a U.S. Attorney's Office news release, a registered nurse was accused of diverting and tampering with vials of fentanyl and injectable hydromorphone intended for patients at Sovah Health-Danville beginning in January 2020. On May 19, 2020, the hospital discovered that the tops of several vials had been removed or tampered with, including 14 of 20 fentanyl vials whose tops popped off and one vial with a dry white film that appeared to be superglue. The nurse was already serving a three-year prison sentence for tampering with consumer products at the same hospital.

Pinellas Park pharmacy owner sentenced for filling oxycodone and hydromorphone prescriptions outside professional practice

A licensed pharmacist who owned a small pharmacy in Pinellas Park pleaded guilty on April 24, 2020, to unlawful distribution of oxycodone outside the scope of professional practice. According to court documents, the pharmacy filled Schedule II prescriptions for oxycodone and hydromorphone that were not issued for a legitimate medical purpose, accepted only cash at above-market per-pill prices, and ignored red flags such as opiate-naive patients traveling long distances. The pharmacist was sentenced to 30 months in federal prison with a $500,000 fine and a $766,819 forfeiture money judgment. A pharmacy technician employed there also pleaded guilty and was sentenced to 25 months.

Pembina County Long-Term Care Nurse Charged With Stealing Resident Narcotics

Mountain, North Dakota

A licensed practical nurse at a long-term care facility in Pembina County, North Dakota was charged in April 2020 with theft of a prescription and reckless endangerment after a resident's medication card was found tampered with in November 2017 - pills that were supposed to be hydrocodone/acetaminophen had been broken open and resealed with tape, with acetaminophen substituted inside. She was fired at the time, and the case was later investigated by the Pembina County Sheriff's Office and North Dakota's newly created Medicaid Fraud Control Unit, whose director filed the charges as the unit's first prosecution. The charges remained pending at the time of reporting.

Missouri Nurse's Probation Extended Over Employer Medication Diversion

Missouri

The Missouri State Board of Nursing disciplined a registered nurse for unlawfully taking and consuming prescription medications and syringes from her employer over several months in 2019, placing her on three years' probation with mandatory abstinence and random drug/alcohol screening; the board later extended the probation after a positive alcohol test.

Wisconsin Dentist Pleads Guilty to Diverting Oxycodone Through Employee's Prescription

Mauston, Wisconsin

A dentist practicing in Mauston, Wisconsin wrote an oxycodone prescription in the name of his own dental hygienist and directed her to fill it and hand the pills over to him for his personal use, reimbursing her for the insurance co-pay. The hygienist later cooperated with a DEA investigation into the scheme. He pleaded guilty in federal court in Madison to obtaining oxycodone by misrepresentation, fraud, and deception.

Buffalo-Area Physician Diverted Controlled Substances Through Fraudulent Prescriptions to Associates

Buffalo, New York

A New York-licensed physician who had worked as a contracted doctor at Erie County Medical Center, Mercy Hospital of Buffalo, and the Monsignor Carr Institute pleaded guilty to conspiring to distribute oxycodone, hydrocodone, and amphetamine. Over four years, he issued 179 fraudulent prescriptions in his own name and in the names of coworkers, friends, and drug-using associates who were never his patients, trading the prescriptions for cocaine, cash, and a share of the pills. The scheme was uncovered through a DEA investigation that identified the associates receiving prescriptions with no legitimate medical purpose. He pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute controlled substances, with sentencing scheduled for July 2020.

Anchorage nurse practitioner charged with manslaughter and drug distribution for opioid prescriptions without office visits

Anchorage, AK

Prosecutors alleged that an Anchorage nurse practitioner used her position to fraudulently give a patient and others vast quantities of prescription opioids, often prescribing without office visits, chart notes or explanation and sometimes taking refill requests via Facebook messages. The charging document alleged she prescribed diazepam, oxycodone, tramadol, hydrocodone and Ambien to the patient, and that another person sold the opioids to the patient. The patient died of an opioid overdose in 2015 with diazepam, oxycodone and alcohol in her system; the nurse practitioner was indicted on 18 felony counts including manslaughter and criminally negligent homicide, pleaded not guilty, and had her nursing license suspended.

Farmville pharmacy and pharmacist-in-charge ordered to pay $600,000 and permanently barred from dispensing controlled substances

A federal court in the Eastern District of North Carolina entered a consent judgment requiring a Farmville pharmacy and its owner and pharmacist-in-charge to pay $600,000 in civil penalties and never again dispense opioids or other controlled substances. The government alleged that for years the defendants ignored well-known red flags of diversion, including filling high-dose opioid cocktails for long-distance patients, hundreds of opioid prescriptions for members of the same family, and prescriptions from a prescriber known to have been cut off by other pharmacies. Under the order, the pharmacist surrenders his pharmacy license and the pharmacy surrenders its DEA registration. The claims remain allegations only, with no judicial determination or admission of liability.

Rawlins physician charged with prescribing oxycodone and other controlled substances outside legitimate medical practice

Rawlins, WY

A former physician in Rawlins, Wyoming was charged in a 32-count federal indictment with dispensing oxycodone, alprazolam, tramadol, promethazine with codeine, amphetamine/dextroamphetamine and hydrocodone from 2014 to 2017 without a legitimate medical purpose and outside the usual course of professional practice, including to people and pregnant women under 21. He was scheduled to plead guilty in federal court in Cheyenne in late February 2020. The Wyoming Board of Medicine suspended his licence in 2017 after finding he inappropriately prescribed controlled substances for other than legitimate purposes, prescribed them to known abusers, and offered drugs in exchange for sex, and he voluntarily relinquished his licence in August 2018.

Iowa Nursing Home Nurse Sentenced for Stealing Patients' Pain Medication

Manchester, Iowa

Katie Louise Boll, a nurse at an Iowa nursing home, obtained hydrocodone, morphine, oxycodone, codeine, and tramadol from at least fourteen patients in her care through misrepresentation and deception, and diluted a patient's liquid morphine with mouthwash until it was less than 2 percent of its labeled strength. She pleaded guilty in September 2019 to tampering with a consumer product and acquiring controlled substances by fraud, and was sentenced in January 2020 to four years in federal prison.

Casper pharmacy agreed to $1 million civil settlement over controlled substance dispensing allegations

A Casper, Wyoming pharmacy agreed in January 2020 to pay $1 million to resolve federal allegations of drug law violations, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Wyoming. The pharmacy was investigated in connection with the criminal prosecution of a physician who was convicted of illegally distributing prescription medication and sentenced in August 2019 to 25 years in prison. The civil settlement is not a finding of liability; it does not require an admission of wrongdoing by the pharmacy, and neither the pharmacy nor its employees were named in the criminal case.

Virginia Nurse License Suspended Over Roanoke-Area Nursing Home Opioid Diversion

Roanoke and Lynchburg, Virginia

A Virginia nurse who worked at Pheasant Ridge Nursing and Rehab Center in Roanoke and Central Healthcare in Lynchburg, among other area employers, had a nursing license suspended after a local TV investigation and Virginia Board of Nursing action found she diverted opioids for personal, unauthorized use across multiple healthcare employers.

Bucks County Dentist Pays $150,000 for Opioid Diversion and Recordkeeping Violations

Bucks County, Pennsylvania

Dr. Pranathi V. Reddy, a dentist practicing in Bucks County, Pennsylvania, diverted a package of controlled substances for personal use in October 2018, resulting in an overdose that required hospital transport. A subsequent investigation by the DEA and the Pennsylvania Department of State found she had also failed for over a year to maintain required inventory, transfer, and storage records for the controlled substances used in her dental practice. Reddy settled the civil allegations with the U.S. Attorney's Office, agreeing to pay $150,000, to stop purchasing, prescribing, or dispensing Schedule II controlled substances for at least four years, and to submit to ongoing DEA reporting requirements. The settlement resolved allegations only, with no admission of liability.

Haverhill Nurse Sentenced for Tampering with Hospice Patient's Morphine

Amesbury, Massachusetts

Lauren Perrin, a licensed practical nurse at Maplewood Care and Rehabilitation Center in Amesbury, Massachusetts, took morphine sulfate from three bottles prescribed to a hospice patient for her own personal use and replaced the missing volume with cough syrup to avoid detection. The tampering diluted the medication to as little as 4-29% of its intended potency, depriving the dying patient of adequate pain relief in the weeks before her death. Perrin pleaded guilty in September 2019 to one count of tampering with a consumer product and was sentenced on December 18, 2019 to 54 months in federal prison and three years of supervised release.

Connecticut Pharmacist Admits Tampering with Home-Infusion Narcotics

Wolcott, Connecticut

Carl Mancini, a licensed pharmacist at a Connecticut company that compounded home and hospice intravenous infusions, used a syringe to withdraw hydromorphone and morphine from vials between January and June 2019, reinjecting saline so the vials would appear unopened. He used specialized crimping tools to reseal the tampered vials before returning them to the secure pharmacy area, and pleaded guilty in December 2019 to tampering with a consumer product.

Air-Evacuation Paramedic Tampered with Fentanyl and Ketamine Vials

Weatherford, Oklahoma

Colin Andrew Davis, a paramedic for an emergency air-evacuation company, removed fentanyl and ketamine from vials in November 2017 and replaced them with sterile saline, so patients undergoing emergency air evacuation risked receiving saline instead of pain medication or anesthesia. A narcotics log later showed medical staff had already administered the tampered fentanyl to three patients and the tampered ketamine to one before Davis admitted what he had done; a life-flight mission had to be canceled because he was too disoriented to work. He was sentenced in December 2019 to six months in federal prison.

Jacksonville Nurse Pleads Guilty to Tampering with Injectable Painkillers

Jacksonville, Florida

A nurse at Jacksonville-area hospitals repeatedly extracted hydromorphone (Dilaudid) from syringes in hospital inventory during 2017 and 2018, replaced it with saline, and returned the syringes for use on future patients. Hospital records showed she was obtaining drugs for patients and returning them supposedly unused at ten times the rate of her nursing peers, including at least one syringe drawn for a patient who was not hers and had not complained of pain. She pleaded guilty in December 2019 to tampering with a consumer product.

Registered nurse alleged to have diverted controlled substances from a rehabilitation facility in Burlington

Burlington, WI

A registered nurse was alleged to have diverted controlled substances from a rehabilitation facility in Burlington, Wisconsin, on or around December 3, 2019. The Wisconsin Board of Nursing accepted a stipulation and entered a final decision and order on September 10, 2020, accepting surrender of the nurse's license, barring reinstatement for at least one year, and imposing $632 in costs.

Chicago pharmacy technician sentenced to five years for stealing and selling hydrocodone

A former pharmacy technician at a Chicago discount pharmacy pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to possess a controlled substance with intent to deliver and was sentenced to five years in federal prison. Prosecutors said she and a co-worker conspired to steal 56,108 hydrocodone pills between October 2015 and December 2017 and sold them outside the pharmacy. The co-defendant was sentenced earlier in 2019 to a year and a day in prison.

Chicago pharmacy technician sentenced to five years for stealing and selling hydrocodone

A former technician at a Chicago discount pharmacy pleaded guilty to conspiring to steal approximately 56,108 hydrocodone pills between October 2015 and December 2017 and sell them outside the pharmacy. According to the DEA release, the theft was concealed by falsifying the pharmacy's inventory to make the pills appear either not received from the distributor or dispensed to patients. The technician was sentenced to five years in federal prison; a co-defendant who pleaded guilty to the same charge received a year and a day.

Chicago Pharmacy Technician Sentenced for Stealing 56,000 Hydrocodone Pills

Chicago, Illinois

Elizabeth Cruz and co-defendant Jacqueline Green conspired to steal approximately 56,108 hydrocodone pills from Allcare Discount Pharmacy between October 2015 and August 2018, falsifying inventory records to conceal the theft. Cruz was sentenced in 2019 to five years in federal prison.

ICU Nurse Sentenced for Stealing Fentanyl at Parker Adventist Hospital

Parker, Colorado

An ICU nurse at Parker Adventist Hospital in Parker, Colorado, withdrew fentanyl from the automated dispensing cabinet dispensing cassettes using a syringe and saline flushes, at times replacing the stolen drug with saline before returning cassettes to the machine. She pleaded guilty to tampering with a consumer product and was sentenced in November 2019 to 44 months in federal prison.

Pharmacist stole Schedule IV controlled substances from Institutional Care Pharmacy

Tiffin, OH

A pharmacist stole Schedule IV controlled substances from Institutional Care Pharmacy in Tiffin, Ohio, between May and June 2019. The pharmacist was observed on store security camera and admitted stealing lorazepam, tramadol, zolpidem, clonazepam, modafinil, and alprazolam, and retrieved stolen drugs from a purse and residence. The Board found violations including theft of a dangerous drug and possession of a Schedule IV controlled substance, and suspended the pharmacist's license indefinitely while removing an earlier summary suspension.

Pain Clinic Nurse Accused of Replacing Stolen Fentanyl Vials

Greenville, MI

Michigan's Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs summarily suspended a registered nurse's licence and served an accompanying administrative complaint alleging the nurse stole vials of liquid fentanyl from a pain management clinic and replaced them with other medication similar in appearance to conceal the diversion. The department stated that an order of summary suspension is a temporary measure to protect the public and is not a final determination that the licensee violated the Public Health Code.

Magoffin County Nurse Sentenced for Tampering with Hospital Medication

Salyersville, Kentucky

Kelsie Spencer, a nurse at Paul B. Hall Regional Medical Center, removed vials of the controlled substance butorphanol tartrate (Stadol) from the hospital's drug supply area for her own use, then injected saline back into the vials to conceal the theft. She pleaded guilty in July 2019 to tampering with a controlled substance and was sentenced in October 2019 to 24 months in federal prison.

St. Vincent Healthcare Nurse Swapped Patient's Pain Pills for Acetaminophen

Billings, Montana

A nurse at St. Vincent Healthcare replaced a patient's prescribed hydrocodone with generic over-the-counter acetaminophen on December 6, 2018, to feed her own opioid use. The swap was discovered when the patient noticed she was receiving different-looking pills from this nurse than from other nurses and reported worse pain during her shifts. She admitted the theft when confronted by a manager and pleaded guilty to tampering with a consumer product, and was sentenced in October 2019 to four years of probation.

Queens Supervising Pharmacist Sentenced for Filling Forged Oxycodone Prescriptions

Richmond Hill, Queens, New York

Victor Laperla, the supervising pharmacist at Dale Pharmacy & Surgical Inc. in Richmond Hill, Queens, accepted cash payments to knowingly fill forged prescriptions for oxycodone 30 mg tablets and to sell additional pills outside any valid prescription. An investigation by the New York Special Narcotics Prosecutor's office and the DEA traced roughly 855 oxycodone prescriptions Laperla filled between 2013 and 2018, totaling approximately 158,000 pills. Laperla pleaded guilty on August 8, 2019 to criminal sale of a controlled substance and conspiracy, and was sentenced on August 30, 2019 to four years in prison plus five years of post-release supervision, and was required to surrender his pharmacist license. A pharmacy technician co-defendant faced separate, pending charges for allegedly assisting the scheme.

St. Francis Hospital Nurse Turned Off Infusion Pumps to Divert Narcotics

Hartford, CT

A registered nurse at St. Francis Hospital & Medical Center in Hartford turned off patients' narcotic infusion pumps for between two-and-a-half and nearly eleven hours in September and October 2017 and diverted the hydromorphone, fentanyl and morphine for personal use. The state Board of Examiners for Nursing also found the nurse falsified controlled-substance receipt records and failed to document medical and hospital records accurately. The licence was suspended for one year with a $2,000 fine, then placed on probation for five years with weekly random drug tests and therapy.

Nursing Facility LPN Took Six Patients' Oxycodone

Glastonbury, CT

A licensed practical nurse at Salmon Brook Health Care, a skilled nursing facility in Glastonbury, took oxycodone tablets intended for six patients in the nurse's care in 2015 and failed to document their medical records accurately. The state Board of Examiners for Nursing placed the licence on probation for two years, ordered coursework in professional ethics, medication administration and time management, and barred employment as a nurse for two years.

Wausau Physician Pleads Guilty to Diverting Fentanyl Patches from Patients

Wausau, Wisconsin

Thomas Strick, a family practice physician employed by Aspirus Health Care and working at Aspirus Wausau Hospital and the Aspirus Wausau Family Clinic, prescribed fentanyl patches to patients without a medical need and then instructed them to return the filled patches to him for his own personal use. A DEA investigation of patient prescription records identified more than 100 suspected diversions of fentanyl patches between 2011 and 2018. Strick pleaded guilty on July 18, 2019 to five counts of obtaining fentanyl by misrepresentation and fraud, and faced up to four years in prison with sentencing scheduled for October 2019.

Hartford Hospital Nurse Disciplined for Diverting Opiates

Hartford, CT

A registered nurse at Hartford Hospital had their licence placed on probation for four years by the state Board of Examiners for Nursing, which found the nurse abused and diverted opiates and abused alcohol. The consent order requires therapy, random submission to urine screens, employer reports and ethics coursework, bars solo practice, and prohibits any access to or administration of controlled substances for one year.

Georgia Pharmacy Owner Charged Over Fake Prescriptions and Unauthorized Controlled Substance Distribution

Baxley, Georgia

The owner of a Baxley, Georgia pharmacy was charged after a DEA and HHS investigation found he created fake prescriptions billed to Medicare and Medicaid and distributed controlled substances to individuals without a physician's prescription over nearly four years.

Georgia Pharmacist-in-Charge Charged Over False Statements in Controlled-Substance Dispensing Audit

Darien, Georgia

The pharmacist-in-charge of a Darien, Georgia pharmacy was charged after federal investigators found she drafted false and fraudulent statements in response to a DEA regulatory review of her pharmacy's high volume of controlled-substance prescriptions from high-volume prescribers.

Hartford hospital nurse placed on four-year probation for diverting opiates

The Connecticut Board of Examiners for Nursing placed a registered nurse who had worked at Hartford Hospital on four years of probation under a consent order that cited abuse and diversion of opiates and abuse of alcohol. Probation terms include therapy, random urine screens, employer reports, ethics coursework, a ban on solo practice and a one-year bar on accessing or administering controlled substances. The article does not give the date of the board meeting; it was reported as occurring after a November 2018 event mentioned elsewhere in the piece.

Connecticut LPN placed on probation after Massachusetts license suspension for diverting opioids

The Connecticut Board of Examiners for Nursing placed a licensed practical nurse's Connecticut license on four years of probation after her Massachusetts license was suspended. The Massachusetts action cited diverting and/or using Roxanol, Dilaudid and/or oxycodone to excess, inaccurate medical records and falsified controlled substance receipt records; she later surrendered that license. The Connecticut board found she was actively engaged in recovery with negative random urine screens. The article does not state the date of the board's action.

Minnesota pharmacy chain pays $225,000 to resolve Controlled Substances Act claims after pharmacist-in-charge diverted opioids

On June 11, 2019, the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Minnesota announced that a Minnesota grocery-based pharmacy chain agreed to pay $225,000 in civil penalties to resolve allegations that it failed to keep complete records and maintain adequate controls over Schedule II drugs between 2011 and 2015. According to the allegations, those gaps allowed the pharmacist-in-charge of one retail store to fabricate nine patient accounts and enter numerous false prescriptions in the prescription management system, diverting hundreds of doses for personal use. The chain reported the misconduct to the DEA after discovering it, and the pharmacist-in-charge pleaded guilty in federal court to obtaining controlled substances by fraud. The settlement resolves allegations and is not a finding of liability.

Nurse practitioner forged physicians' signatures to issue unauthorized controlled-substance prescriptions at two Montgomery pill-mill practices

Montgomery, AL

A nurse practitioner was convicted after trial of running two pill-mill operations out of Montgomery medical practices over four years, issuing illegitimate prescriptions for fentanyl, hydrocodone, oxycodone, alprazolam, and methadone. Because she was not authorized to refill Schedule II prescriptions without a physician's approval, she forged physicians' signatures on many of the prescriptions. She was sentenced to 10 years in federal prison, with enhancements for testifying falsely at trial and abusing the trust placed in her as a licensed medical professional.

Physician found guilty of operating a pill mill and prescribing opioids without legitimate medical purpose

Canton, OH

On June 18, 2019, a physician who practiced in Jackson Township was found guilty on 187 counts for operating a pill mill in which opioids and other drugs were prescribed without a legitimate medical purpose. The jury found the physician guilty of involuntary manslaughter, engaging in a pattern of corrupt activity, several counts of aggravated trafficking in drugs, Medicaid fraud, grand theft, tampering with records, and illegal processing of drug documents. Sentencing was scheduled for July 3, 2019.

Louisiana federal settlement with drug distributor over civil penalty claims

On May 24, 2019, the DEA and the U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Louisiana announced a civil settlement with a pharmaceutical drug distributor. Under the settlement the company agreed to pay $22 million to resolve civil penalty claims. The available release text does not describe the specific conduct alleged, and a settlement is not a finding of liability.

Charlotte pharmacy technician convicted of embezzling oxycodone via fraudulent prescription

A pharmacy technician working a drive-thru window at a Charlotte chain pharmacy accepted a $100 payment from an unidentified man and completed an incomplete oxycodone prescription using another patient's information pulled from the pharmacy's patient portal. A pharmacist raised concerns the same day, and the pharmacy's investigators reviewed security footage and the prior day's prescriptions before interviewing the technician, who signed a written statement. A Mecklenburg County jury convicted the technician of embezzlement of a controlled substance under N.C. Gen. Stat. 90-108(a)(14), and the North Carolina Court of Appeals affirmed the conviction in December 2020 over a dissent.

Physician at Green Mountain Family Medicine diverted controlled substances by writing staff members' prescriptions for personal and family use

Rutland and White River Junction, VT

A physician who owned Green Mountain Family Medicine, with offices in Rutland and White River Junction, Vermont, admitted to writing and receiving at least nine controlled-substance prescriptions in staff members' names for his own use from May 2013 through October 2015. The controlled substances included hydrocodone bitartrate and acetaminophen, lorazepam, diazepam, and tramadol. The physician also admitted writing at least four controlled-substance prescriptions in staff members' names for an immediate family member's use, including diazepam and carisoprodol, and altering staff medical records to include false information about the prescriptions. The Board approved a consent order reprimanding the physician, suspending his license for five years with time served from June 21, 2016, prohibiting him from prescribing Schedule II-V controlled substances in Vermont, and imposing a $9,000 administrative penalty.

Las Vegas nurse sentenced for illegally prescribing hydrocodone and oxycodone in a cash-for-prescriptions scheme

Las Vegas, NV

A nurse practicing in Las Vegas pleaded guilty to eight counts of distribution of a controlled substance and eight counts of health care fraud, the Department of Justice announced, and was sentenced to more than six years in federal prison. From January to around May 2018, the nurse arranged with a surgical technician and a physician to give hydrocodone and oxycodone to patients without a legitimate medical purpose in exchange for cash, and wrote illegal prescriptions without a medical purpose. Between July 2016 and December 2017, the nurse also wrote prescriptions for lidocaine, modafinil and diclofenac sodium without examining the patient and billed Medicare and Medicaid; the prescriptions were filled at Atlas Pharmacy, which paid roughly $30,000 in exchange for referrals. The nurse was sentenced in May 2019, will serve three years of supervised release, and was ordered to pay $3,749,121 in restitution.

Utah County sheriff's evidence technician charged with taking drugs slated for destruction

A former forensic technician with the Utah County Sheriff's Office was charged in May 2019 with stealing drugs that were supposed to be destroyed. The charges, filed in 4th District Court, were three class A misdemeanor counts of possession of hydrocodone or OxyContin and three class B misdemeanor counts of theft. The charges are allegations, and the available report does not describe a resolution.

Morgantown pharmacist sentenced to 121 months for distributing oxycodone outside professional practice

A Morgantown, West Virginia pharmacist pleaded guilty in May 2019 to conspiracy to distribute controlled substances outside the bounds of professional medical practice and to filing a false tax return, and was later sentenced to 121 months in federal prison. The pharmacist admitted to conspiring with others to distribute more than 7,400 grams of oxycodone in Monongalia County and elsewhere between August 2014 and August 2018. The court ordered $507,942.42 in restitution to the IRS and former employees and entered a money judgment of $1,845,000, and under the plea agreement the pharmacist agreed to give up the pharmacy license and not seek reinstatement.

Lewiston pharmacy technician sentenced to 54 months after stealing nearly 60,000 pills from employer

A pharmacy technician at a Lewiston pharmacy was sentenced in federal court to 54 months in prison for conspiracy to distribute controlled substances. According to court records, the technician began stealing prescription controlled substances in August 2017 and took almost 60,000 pills over roughly eleven months before being arrested, including over 45,000 hydrocodone pills. Many of the pills were distributed to others who sold them locally, and the court ordered restitution of over $30,000 to the pharmacy.

Rhode Island VA Nurse Sentenced Over Liquid Opioid Tampering

Providence, Rhode Island

A Veterans Affairs Medical Center nurse in Providence was sentenced to 24 months in federal prison for tampering with and fraudulently obtaining morphine and other opioid prescriptions meant for patients, admitting he removed vials of liquid opioids from a locked storage cart and left behind vials filled with saline.

Boise hospital nurse diverted fentanyl vials by falsifying dispensing-system records

Boise, ID

A registered nurse at a Boise hospital had access to a system that monitored the distribution and management of prescription medications, including controlled substances. On at least 28 occasions, the nurse accessed the machine and removed fentanyl 100 mcg/2 mL vials by falsifying and manipulating information in the system, according to court records cited by the U.S. Attorney's office. The nurse pleaded guilty on Oct. 25, 2018, and was sentenced to three years of probation; the case was investigated by a DEA-led Tactical Diversion Squad.

Hilo clinic physician and employees accused of unlawfully distributing opioids

Hilo, HI

At a medical clinic in Hilo, a physician and four employees were arrested and accused of prescribing and unlawfully distributing powerful narcotics, sedatives and opioids, including hydrocodone, oxycodone, fentanyl and morphine. They are scheduled to stand trial in U.S. District Court in June.

Army hospital pharmacy technician admitted stealing and distributing hydrocodone and oxycodone

Oahu, Hawaii

A pharmacy technician at Tripler Army Medical Center was charged with and later admitted stealing and distributing 8,505 pills containing five milligrams of either hydrocodone or oxycodone from the hospital's pharmacy vault. The technician is serving a one-year sentence in a federal correctional institution in California.

KU Hospital Pharmacy Tech Stole 483 Bags of Fentanyl

Kansas City, Kansas

A pharmacy technician at the University of Kansas Hospital stole fentanyl from the hospital where his duties included stocking automated dispensing cabinets, taking 483 bags of the drug over time. He was sentenced in 2018 to three years of probation, and his pharmacy license was revoked.

Tribal pharmacy in St. Ignatius paid civil penalty after about 2,500 oxycodone pills went missing

Approximately 2,500 oxycodone pills were stolen or unaccounted for at the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes' pharmacy in St. Ignatius, prompting a Drug Enforcement Administration inspection covering March 2017 to March 2018. The DEA alleged the pharmacy failed to adequately track controlled-substance records and failed to report the missing oxycodone. The pharmacy resolved the alleged violations through a civil settlement with the U.S. Attorney's Office, agreeing to pay a $95,520 penalty and to conduct annual compliance evaluations for three years; the settlement is not a finding of liability.

Arizona pharmacist and technician sentenced for diverting over 200,000 opioid tablets through two Phoenix-area pharmacies

A pharmacist who owned two Phoenix-area pharmacies and a pharmacy technician who worked for her were convicted in federal court of conspiring to distribute controlled substances and to launder drug proceeds. According to the U.S. Attorney's Office, from September 2014 until their arrest in July 2017 the pharmacies processed fraudulent prescriptions and distributed more than 200,000 oxycodone and hydrocodone tablets, thousands of alprazolam tablets, and more than 13 gallons of promethazine with codeine into the community. The pharmacist was sentenced on November 28, 2018 to 120 months in prison; the technician had earlier been sentenced to 48 months. Two coconspirators who created fraudulent prescriptions and distributed the drugs to street-level dealers were also convicted.

Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes' Pharmacy Settles Over Missing Oxycodone

St. Ignatius, Montana

The Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes' Pharmacy on the Flathead Indian Reservation agreed to pay a $95,520 civil penalty after a DEA inspection, prompted by roughly 2,500 oxycodone pills that were stolen or unaccounted for, found the pharmacy had failed to adequately track controlled-substance records and failed to report the missing pills to DEA. The pharmacy also agreed to certify compliance annually for three years or face a judgment of up to $240,640. The settlement was announced November 20, 2018.

Montana reservation pharmacy settled over 2,500 unaccounted-for oxycodone tablets

A pharmacy on Montana's Flathead Indian Reservation agreed to a $95,000 settlement after it could not account for about 2,500 oxycodone tablets over a one-year period ending March 2018. A Drug Enforcement Administration inspection found that staff were not adequately tracking controlled substances and that the pharmacy had not reported the missing oxycodone to the agency. The settlement, reached with the tribal government that operates the pharmacy, requires compliance with federal controlled-substance recordkeeping rules and exposes the pharmacy to a $240,000 fine for any future violations. A settlement is a negotiated resolution and not a finding of liability.

Registered nurse alleged to have diverted a controlled substance from a nursing facility in Mukwonago

Mukwonago, WI

A registered nurse was alleged to have diverted a controlled substance from a nursing facility in Mukwonago, Wisconsin, on or around November 7, 2018. The Wisconsin Board of Nursing accepted a stipulation and entered a final decision and order on September 10, 2020, accepting surrender of the nurse's license, barring reinstatement for at least one year, and imposing $632 in costs.

Physician charged with health care fraud and distributing Suboxone without medical necessity through a clinic

Dublin, OH

A federal grand jury charged a Central Ohio physician practicing in Dublin with charges related to a health care fraud scheme and with prescribing and distributing Suboxone without medical necessity. The scheme allegedly included marketing prescription creams in Sav-a-Lot and low-income neighborhoods and persistently mailing those creams to Medicaid customers. The physician was charged in a seven-count indictment and was scheduled for an initial appearance in federal court. The Board of Pharmacy collaborated on the investigation with the Ohio Attorney General's Medicaid Fraud Control Unit, HHS Office of Inspector General, DEA and FBI.

Two South Denver pharmacists pleaded guilty to felony opioid distribution charges

Two pharmacists practicing in south Denver pleaded guilty in federal court to felony charges related to the illegal dispensing and distribution of controlled substances, including opioids. The pleas were announced by the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Colorado and the DEA Denver Division in October 2018. The release does not describe the sentences imposed.

Hospital pharmacy technician diverted hydrocodone and oxycodone from a pharmacy vault through fraudulent automated dispensing transactions

A former pharmacy technician at Tripler Army Medical Center was sentenced to 12 months in jail and six years of court supervision after pleading guilty to one count each of possessing with intent to distribute hydrocodone and oxycodone. According to the report, she stole 8,505 pills, each containing 5 milligrams of either painkiller, from the hospital's pharmacy vault between February 2017 and March 2018, using her fingerprint and unique login to conduct 82 fraudulent transactions in the hospital's automated medication distribution and tracking system, which did not require a valid prescription for patients being discharged. The report states she supplied pills to her boyfriend and used some herself, and that she repaid the hospital $1,033 before sentencing.

Las Vegas nurse practitioner and surgical technician pleaded guilty to distributing hydrocodone and oxycodone prescriptions for cash

An advanced practice registered nurse and a surgical technician pleaded guilty in federal court in Las Vegas in October 2018 to unlawfully distributing prescription opioids, the U.S. Attorney for the District of Nevada announced. Investigators said that from about January to May 2018 the two conspired to distribute hydrocodone and oxycodone to people without a legitimate medical purpose in exchange for cash, with the technician meeting buyers in parking lots and handing out prescriptions from the nurse practitioner's pad bearing a physician's pre-signed DEA number. The nurse practitioner also pleaded guilty to health care fraud tied to prescriptions written without a legitimate medical purpose, which the government said cost Medicare and Medicaid approximately $3.7 million.

Arkansas nurse surrenders license after record reviews found controlled-substance diversion at two facilities

Reviews of medical records at an academic medical center in Little Rock and at a second facility uncovered diversion of controlled substances by a nurse, with the diversion dated to around September 2018. The nurse voluntarily surrendered the nursing license, and the matter was reported to the state licensure board.

University of Michigan Health System Pays $4.3M in Record Drug Diversion Settlement

Ann Arbor, Michigan

The University of Michigan Health System (UMHS) agreed to pay the United States $4.3 million, the nation's largest settlement of its kind at the time, to resolve allegations that it violated the Controlled Substances Act. DEA opened its investigation after two UMHS employees — a nurse and an anesthesiology resident — overdosed on opioids, including fentanyl, at a UMHS facility in December 2013, one fatally. The investigation found UMHS failed to secure DEA registrations for 15 off-site ambulatory care locations that received and dispensed narcotics from the main hospital pharmacy, and found significant recordkeeping violations including failing to timely notify DEA of thefts or significant losses of controlled substances. The settlement was announced August 30, 2018.

Pharmacy Technician Diverts Fentanyl at Iowa Methodist Medical Center

Des Moines, Iowa

Between August and October 2016, Victor Van Cleave, a pharmacy technician at Iowa Methodist Medical Center, diverted about 252 vials of fentanyl and 18 vials of hydromorphone meant for patients. He replaced the drugs with sterile water and was sentenced in 2018 to 30 months in federal prison.

Long Island pharmacy chain settled claims it failed to timely report controlled substance losses and thefts

A national retail pharmacy chain agreed to pay $1.5 million to resolve a federal investigation alleging that certain of its Long Island stores failed to timely report the loss or theft of controlled substances, including hydrocodone, as required by the Controlled Substances Act. The government said timely reporting is required so the DEA can promptly investigate possible diversion. The settlement resolved civil penalty claims and is not a finding of liability.

Pain clinic physician indicted for prescribing fentanyl, oxycodone and other controlled substances without patient examinations

Hamilton, OH

A federal grand jury charged a physician who owned and operated a pain clinic in Hamilton, Ohio, in a 114-count indictment arising from an alleged pill-mill operation. According to the indictment, patients were prescribed fentanyl, oxycodone, methadone, morphine and other controlled substances on many occasions without actually being seen by the doctor, and the practice allegedly billed Medicare, Medicaid and the Bureau of Workers' Compensation for medically unnecessary prescriptions. At least one patient allegedly died as a result of using the prescribed controlled substances. The physician is also alleged to have received more than $103,000 from a pharmaceutical company for purported speaking engagements about a fentanyl spray that were allegedly sham programs, and the state Board of Pharmacy had opened a joint investigation in October 2016 over concerns about prescribing that did not meet minimum standards of patient care.

ED Nurse Transmits Hepatitis C to Patients at Good Samaritan Hospital

Puyallup, Washington

A CDC investigation linked an August 2017-March 2018 hepatitis C outbreak of at least 12 patients to Cora Weberg, an ED nurse who admitted diverting injectable fentanyl and hydromorphone and replacing them with saline. Her contaminated syringes exposed patients to her blood, and she lost her nursing license.

Health system settles alleged opioid diversion case over tens of thousands of missing oxycodone 30 mg tablets

Springfield, GA

A Springfield, Georgia health system agreed to pay $4.1 million to settle alleged large-scale opioid diversion claims, according to the DEA. An investigation reportedly found tens of thousands of missing oxycodone 30 mg tablets spanning more than four years, and the system allegedly failed to notify authorities of the suspected diversion within the time required by federal law. The system said it has since overhauled its pharmacy recordkeeping and reporting and implemented electronic inventory systems.

Georgia hospital settles allegations over unaccounted 30 mg oxycodone tablets believed diverted

The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Georgia announced a $4.1 million civil settlement with a Georgia hospital over drug diversion allegations. The government alleged the hospital failed to provide effective controls and procedures to guard against theft and loss of controlled substances, leaving tens of thousands of 30 mg oxycodone tablets unaccounted for and believed diverted over four years, and failed to notify DEA of suspected diversion timely. The hospital agreed to a DEA performance improvement plan including quarterly internal accountability audits and controlled-substance tracking requirements.

North Colorado Medical Center Nurse Stole Opioids from Locked Dispensing System

Greeley, Colorado

Marlene Gilmore, a nurse at North Colorado Medical Center, stole fentanyl, morphine, and hydromorphone from the hospital's locked automated medication management system in 2016, with evidence showing she used the drugs while on duty. She pleaded guilty to theft of a controlled substance by deception and was sentenced on April 26, 2018, to four months in federal prison, in a case announced alongside a second Colorado nurse sentenced the same week for a similar scheme at a Denver VA hospital and ER.

Denver VA and ER Nurse Tampered with Fentanyl Vials, Resealed with Skin Glue

Denver, Colorado

Lisa Marie Jones, a nurse at the Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Denver and a free-standing UCHealth emergency room, stole hydromorphone, morphine, and fentanyl from both facilities in 2016 for personal use, primarily taking "waste" medication left over after administering doses to patients. She also tampered with two vials of fentanyl at the emergency facility, removing the drug, replacing it with saline, resealing the vials with skin glue, and returning them to the automated medication management machine for potential use on future patients; the tampered vials were discovered before reaching any patient. She pleaded guilty to theft of a controlled substance by deception and tampering with a consumer product, and was sentenced on April 19, 2018, to fourteen months in federal prison.

Springfield chain pharmacy technician admitted stealing thousands of hydrocodone tablets over nine months

A Springfield pharmacy technician entered a federal plea agreement admitting to stealing hydrocodone tablets over roughly nine months, from late July 2014 to mid-May 2015, while working at a chain pharmacy. According to the plea agreement described in news coverage, the technician exploited a flaw in the pharmacy's prescription tracking system to dispense hydrocodone prescriptions twice and route the duplicate pills out through the drive-through. The number of tablets was disputed: the plea agreement cited 20,676, state regulators cited approximately 38,000, and defense counsel said a later federal review put the figure closer to 6,000. Sentencing was scheduled for July 2018; the state licensing agency had placed the technician's expired license in refuse-to-renew status in July 2017.

UT Southwestern Pays $4.5M Over Staff Fentanyl Diversion and Two Nurse Overdose Deaths

Dallas, Texas

Two UTSW nurses were found dead in Clements University Hospital bathrooms after overdosing on diverted fentanyl — one on Dec. 15, 2016, and another on April 16, 2018. Investigators found the hospital failed to maintain effective controls, and in 2021 UT Southwestern paid a $4.5 million civil penalty.

UC San Diego anesthesiologist's license revoked after alleged sedative diversion and saline substitution

According to a law-firm blog summarizing news reports and Medical Board of California records, an anesthesiologist at UC San Diego Medical Center had his license revoked in April 2018 following an interim suspension in September 2017. The blog reports that the physician acknowledged a long-term addiction to sedative drugs diverted from hospital supplies and patients, and that he was accused of administering anesthesia while impaired and substituting saline for drugs such as morphine and fentanyl in roughly 800 patient cases. The board accusation reportedly cited dangerous drug use and falsified medical records. The blog cautions that its case facts may be inaccurate.

Meridian nurse practitioner pleaded guilty to swapping hydrocodone in clinic cabinets for muscle relaxants and forging prescriptions

A nurse practitioner employed by a medical organization with multiple facilities in Idaho pleaded guilty in federal court to obtaining controlled substances by fraud, identity theft and misbranding a drug held for sale. According to court records, on at least seven occasions the practitioner accessed locked medication cabinets without authorization, removed bottles of hydrocodone, replaced the pills with a muscle relaxant, resealed the bottles and returned them to the back of the cabinet. The practitioner also forged two prescriptions for hydrocodone using another provider's information. Sentencing was set for June 5, 2018.

Delaware nurse who impersonated a doctor to obtain Xanax lost bid to regain license after permanent revocation

In 2008, a Delaware nurse impersonated a doctor to obtain Xanax for personal use and pleaded guilty to obtaining a controlled substance by misrepresentation or fraud, with the conviction taking effect after the terms of a court diversion program were not met. The Board of Nursing suspended the nurse's licenses in 2011, and after the nurse continued to practice for eight months during the suspension, the Board permanently revoked the licenses. A 2015 gubernatorial pardon of the conviction did not restore eligibility, and the Delaware Supreme Court affirmed the Board's denial of new license applications in February 2018.

Delaware nurse who obtained Xanax by impersonating a doctor loses bid to regain license

A Delaware nurse pled guilty to obtaining a controlled substance by misrepresentation or fraud after impersonating a doctor in 2008 to obtain Xanax for personal use. The Board of Nursing suspended her licenses in 2011, and after she worked as a nurse for eight months while the suspension was in effect, the Board permanently revoked them. Following a 2015 gubernatorial pardon of the criminal conviction, she applied for licensure again; the Board denied the applications, and in February 2018 the Delaware Supreme Court affirmed, reasoning that the permanent revocation rested on practicing without a license rather than on the pardoned conviction.

Home-Infusion Pharmacy Tech Diluted Hospice Patients' IV Opioids

Birmingham, Alabama

The lead pharmacy technician at ContinuumRx of Central Alabama prepared the vast majority of the company's IV bags of morphine and hydromorphone for terminally ill hospice and homecare patients in debilitating pain. Between December 2014 and September 2016, he removed the opioids from vials with a syringe, replaced the withdrawn amount with saline or sterile water, and returned the diluted vials to inventory undetected, later using them to compound IV bags that were distributed to hospice patients. He pleaded guilty to tampering with a consumer product and was sentenced on February 21, 2018, to five years in federal prison.

Wyoming hospital nurse sentenced for diluting hydromorphone and meperidine vials

A former registered nurse at a hospital in Douglas, Wyoming, was sentenced in federal court in February 2018 to eight months of imprisonment after pleading guilty to one count of tampering with a consumer product and one count of acquiring a controlled substance by misrepresentation, deception or subterfuge. A September 2017 grand jury indictment alleged that 58 vials of hydromorphone and a container of meperidine were tampered with by removing some or all of the drug and replacing it with saline solution. The sentence also imposed three years of supervised release with home confinement and substance abuse treatment requirements.

Former registered nurse at Memorial Hospital of Converse County sentenced for stealing hydromorphone and meperidine and replacing them with saline

Douglas, WY

A former registered nurse at Memorial Hospital of Converse County in Douglas, Wyoming, was sentenced in federal court in February 2018 for stealing narcotics and diluting patients' narcotics. The former nurse had pleaded guilty in November to one count of tampering with a consumer product and one count of acquiring a controlled substance by misrepresentation, deception or subterfuge. An indictment alleged tampering with 58 vials of hydromorphone (Dilaudid) and one container of meperidine (Demerol) by removing some or all of the drug and replacing it with saline solution. The sentence was two concurrent eight-month prison terms and two concurrent three-year supervised release terms, and the state nursing board suspended the nurse's license.

Former pharmacy-tech trainee at Little Rock VA hospital sentenced to prison for role in opioid theft and sales

A former pharmacy-technician trainee at the Veterans Affairs hospital in Little Rock was sentenced in mid-February 2018 to two and a half years in federal prison. The sentence was for her role in a conspiracy to distribute opioids that a co-worker had stolen from a hospital supplier.

Edmond hospital employee charged with stealing fentanyl waste from OU Health

Edmond, OK

An Edmond hospital employee was charged with larceny of controlled drugs after police said he stole fentanyl waste from OU Health, according to court documents. A hospital report flagged more than 15 transactions involving fentanyl waste, including fifteen 'override cancel' or 'remove cancel' entries for fentanyl 100 mcg/2ml. Surveillance video was reported to show the employee blocking the camera's view, removing vials from a drawer and pocketing them, and using a syringe and needle to take leftover waste from drip bags for personal use. Police said he later admitted to the theft, which totaled about $430 in fentanyl waste.

Pediatric intensive care nurse sentenced after guilty plea to obtaining morphine by fraud

Baltimore, MD

A registered nurse at the University of Maryland Medical Center Pediatric Intensive Care Unit in Baltimore was convicted and sentenced for diverting morphine. The nurse was assigned to a 10-year-old patient recovering from open heart surgery and documented an 8:30 a.m. intravenous morphine dose but did not document a later dose she told another nurse she had given. The nurse was observed with bruising and bleeding consistent with intravenous drug use and later refused a drug screening; she pleaded guilty to obtaining morphine by fraud and received a suspended sentence with probation and healthcare-program exclusion.

Virginia Physician's DEA Registration Revoked After Concurrent Opioid-Benzodiazepine Prescribing Killed Two Patients

Great Falls, Virginia

A Virginia physician's DEA registration was revoked by final agency order published August 28, 2026, after she failed to answer a December 2025 order to show cause and the allegations were deemed admitted — including that she issued concurrent prescriptions for oxycodone/acetaminophen and diazepam to two patients in March and April 2025, both of whom died of acute intoxication caused by the combination she prescribed. DEA also found she never documented the "extenuating circumstances" Virginia requires for co-prescribing an opioid and a benzodiazepine, never documented risk counseling or lowest-effective-dose prescribing, and never prescribed an opioid reversal agent. The revocation took effect September 28, 2026.

Former VA Medical Center Nurse Indicted for Stealing Hydromorphone

Minneapolis, Minnesota

A former nurse who worked at the Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Minneapolis was indicted on August 21, 2026, on one count of obtaining controlled substances by misrepresentation, fraud, forgery, deception, or subterfuge — allegedly wrongfully obtaining hydromorphone over roughly 13 months.

Massachusetts Pharmacist Pleads Guilty to Diverting Controlled Substances from New Hampshire Pharmacy

Lancaster, New Hampshire

A 60-year-old Massachusetts pharmacist who worked per diem at a North Country Healthcare pharmacy in Lancaster, New Hampshire, pleaded guilty on August 17, 2026 to diverting controlled prescription drugs — including stimulants and benzodiazepines — for personal use while she was the only pharmacist on duty during August 2024.

Celina Pharmacy Owner and Two Pharmacies Banned from Handling Controlled Substances

Celina, Tennessee

A 65-year-old pharmacy owner and two Celina, Tennessee pharmacies he majority-owned agreed to pay $450,000 and accept a permanent ban on handling controlled substances under a consent judgment resolving civil Controlled Substances Act and False Claims Act claims.

Registered nurse accused of diverting morphine from OrthoNebraska surgical unit

Omaha, NE

A registered nurse in the surgical unit at OrthoNebraska in Omaha was accused of stealing 20 to 50 vials of morphine from work. Authorities alleged the nurse entered fictitious orders in patient charts to divert morphine, and the nurse admitted to accessing an automated medication dispensing machine, sometimes using co-workers' login information. An audit showed more than 600 vials of morphine were diverted or stolen from Jan. 1, 2025, to Dec. 1, 2025. The nurse was booked on seven felony counts of intentionally violating a narcotic drug law and admitted to diverting morphine, according to the report.

Pittsfield Pharmacist Charged with Diverting Adderall from Pharmacy Chain

Pittsfield, Massachusetts

Joshua Bradley, 30, of Pittsfield was charged in federal court in Boston with five counts of acquiring a controlled substance by fraud, deception and subterfuge, after allegedly diverting dextroamphetamine and Adderall meant for customers at a pharmacy chain for his own use. The case remains pending.

Contract Nurse Anesthetist Sentenced for Burglarizing Pain Clinic's Controlled Substances

Louisville, Kentucky

Matthew Ryan Elkins, 41, of Crestwood, Kentucky, a contract nurse anesthetist for a Louisville pain treatment center, was caught by police burglarizing the center and removing controlled substances intended for patients. The center's patients typically had implanted intrathecal pain pumps for severe conditions such as cancer, spinal injuries or failed back surgeries, refilled periodically with pre-filled, patient-labeled syringes of pain medication. Elkins was convicted of tampering with consumer products, acquiring a controlled substance by misrepresentation and fraud, and burglary involving controlled substances, and was sentenced on July 20, 2026, to six years and five months in federal prison; he forfeited his Kentucky nursing licenses.

West Virginia Hospital System Settles Federal Controlled-Substance Recordkeeping Case

Morgantown, West Virginia

West Virginia University Health System agreed to pay $4,177,139 and enter a three-year compliance agreement with the DEA to resolve civil allegations that its facilities violated the Controlled Substances Act over a seven-year span, including failing to notify the DEA of thefts or significant losses of controlled substances and failing to maintain accurate inventory records.

Missouri nurse forged oxycodone and Percocet prescriptions using a coworker's pad and DEA number

A registered nurse from Kansas City, Missouri, who worked at a hospital in Kansas City, Kansas, pleaded guilty in federal court in the District of Kansas to one count of possession of a controlled substance by deception and subterfuge. According to court documents, she used her position to obtain a nurse practitioner's prescription pad and DEA registration number and, beginning in March 2024, wrote forged prescriptions for Percocet and oxycodone in relatives' names, filling them at pharmacies in Kansas and Missouri. She later admitted to DEA investigators that she wrote 13 fraudulent prescriptions. She was sentenced to three years of probation and a $5,000 fine, lost her nursing license, and received a lifetime ban from working at any hospital that receives federal funding.

LeMars Nurse Sentenced for Diverting Fentanyl and Hydromorphone, Falsifying Patient Records

LeMars, Iowa

Chad Hoppe, 49, of LeMars, Iowa, an Iowa-licensed registered nurse and shift supervisor, diverted large quantities of fentanyl and hydromorphone meant for patients between May 2024 and March 2025, using them personally and falsifying or omitting the required charting. He also entered false narcotics orders claiming physician authorization he did not have; in one month while working as a supervisor, he pulled over 9,000 mcg of fentanyl compared to 700 mcg by the next-highest staff member at the same facility. Hoppe pleaded guilty on March 9, 2026, to false statements relating to health care matters and aggravated identity theft, and was sentenced on July 9, 2026, to 30 months in prison.

Pottstown Physician Pays $100,000 to Settle Controlled Substances Act Violations

Pottstown, Pennsylvania

Xiang Yuan, M.D., a physician practicing in Pottstown, Pennsylvania, agreed to pay $100,000 to resolve allegations that he violated the Controlled Substances Act by failing to keep complete and accurate records of controlled substances, writing prescriptions "for stock" rather than for identified patients, and improperly moving controlled substances from his registered practice address. As part of the settlement, announced July 2, 2026, Yuan entered a three-year Memorandum of Agreement with DEA imposing compliance obligations stricter than the underlying regulations.

Pharmacy intern stole phentermine from Sam's Club Pharmacy

Boardman, OH

A pharmacy intern was found to have stolen a stock bottle of phentermine 37.5 mg tablets, a Schedule IV controlled substance, from the employer pharmacy. The intern admitted taking the bottle home and denied being addicted to dangerous drugs. The Board removed an earlier summary suspension and indefinitely suspended the pharmacy intern license, with conditions for possible reinstatement.

Yellow Springs pharmacy oxycodone/acetaminophen substitution found during inventory

Yellow Springs, OH

During an incoming inventory, a responsible person observed the security control seal on two 100-count bottles of oxycodone/acetaminophen 10/325 mg tablets, a Schedule II controlled substance. Two hundred tablets had been removed and replaced with acetaminophen 325 mg tablets. The loss was not reported to the Board. The Board found violations and imposed a $5,000 monetary penalty.

Muncie hospital pharmacy license put on probation after pharmacy manager diverted opioids using unused transaction types

Muncie, IN

The Indiana Board of Pharmacy narrowly approved a disciplinary settlement with a Muncie hospital whose pharmacy policies failed to detect a pharmacy manager's theft of Schedule II narcotics over nearly four years. Investigators said the losses included more than 32,000 milliliters of hydromorphone, more than 3,300 milliliters of methadone solution, more than 4,000 methadone tablets and smaller amounts of morphine, with a hospital-estimated loss above $121,000. The settlement keeps the hospital's pharmacy license and controlled substance registration on probation for at least three years and imposes the maximum $44,000 civil fine along with outside audits, inspections and diversion-prevention training.

Registered nurse charged with unlawfully obtaining oxycodone, hydromorphone and fentanyl at a Horry County hospital

Horry County, SC

A registered nurse working at Grand Strand Medical Center in Horry County was arrested after allegedly unlawfully obtaining medications at the facility, according to arrest warrants obtained from the Department of Public Health. The nurse was charged with three counts of theft of controlled substances and nine counts of violation of drug distribution law. Warrants allege that on some dates between Jan. 10 and April 11 the nurse unlawfully obtained a quantity of oxycodone, hydromorphone and fentanyl, and was also accused of furnishing false material or omitting material from a required document. The warrants state the whereabouts of the medication could not be accounted for, and the nurse was released on a $12,000 bond.

VA medical center nurse pleads guilty to diverting and tampering with psychiatric patients' stimulant medications

White River Junction, VT

A nurse at the Veterans Affairs Medical Center in White River Junction pleaded guilty in federal court to stealing drugs prescribed to patients and consuming them herself over a roughly eight-month period. She was charged with two counts of diverting drugs from psychiatric ward patients and tampering with the medications to conceal her use, and the plea agreement states she diverted controlled substances in a variety of ways. According to one count, she removed amphetamine/dextroamphetamine from capsules, separated them in half and administered the empty and nearly empty capsules to patients; to conceal her consumption she replaced tablets with hydroxyzine, an antihistamine. The second count states she knowingly and intentionally acquired amphetamine/dextroamphetamine and methylphenidate by misrepresentation, fraud, deception and subterfuge, and her plea agreement stipulates forfeiture of her nursing license.

Hospice owner accused of reusing deceased patients' narcotics and moving medications between cities

Omaha, NE

The Nebraska Attorney General's Office filed disciplinary charges against a registered nurse who owned an Omaha hospice, alleging misappropriation of medications, improper handling and dispensing of controlled substances, and violations of the Uniform Controlled Substances Act. The petition alleged that narcotics belonging to deceased patients were stored in an unlocked cabinet and that staff used medications from that supply for other patients without proper prescriptions, with employees instructed to document the medications of deceased patients as "destroyed" when they were actually being re-used. The nurse was also accused of transporting medications from deceased Lincoln patients to Omaha, allowing unlicensed staff to sign patient records as licensed professionals, and failing to report and misrepresenting misdemeanor convictions on license renewal applications. Under an agreed settlement, the nurse's license was suspended for 90 days, ethics training was ordered, and a $10,000.00 civil penalty was assessed.

Hospice executive director accused of keeping unlocked cabinet of deceased patients' narcotics

Omaha, NE

The Nebraska Attorney General's Office filed disciplinary charges against the former executive director of an Omaha hospice, a licensed practical nurse, alleging misappropriation of medications, improper handling and dispensing of controlled substances, record falsification, practicing beyond the authorized scope, ethics violations, and violations of the Uniform Controlled Substances Act. The nurse was accused of keeping an unlocked cabinet of narcotics from deceased patients in her office, directing employees to return unused medications, and signing patient records as a physician, social worker and volunteer coordinator. The petition in the same matter alleged that narcotics of deceased patients were re-used for other patients and documented as "destroyed." Under an agreed settlement, the nurse's license was suspended for 90 days, ethics training was ordered, and a $10,000.00 civil penalty was assessed.

Indiana hospital pharmacy placed on probation after multi-year opioid diversion by pharmacy manager

The Indiana Board of Pharmacy voted 3-2 to accept a revised settlement with a Muncie hospital over what board members described as one of the largest known drug diversion cases in the state. The agreement places the hospital's pharmacy license on probation for at least three years, imposes a $44,000 civil fine tied to 44 alleged administrative violations, and requires quarterly outside audits and additional diversion-prevention training. Reported losses included more than 32,000 milliliters of hydromorphone, more than 3,300 milliliters of methadone solution and more than 4,000 methadone tablets; the former pharmacy manager faces pending felony charges that remain allegations.

Orlando pharmacy and pharmacist settle Controlled Substances Act allegations over Schedule V distribution and recordkeeping

An Orlando pharmacy and its pharmacist agreed to pay the United States $50,000 to resolve allegations that they improperly distributed Schedule V drugs and committed multiple recordkeeping violations under the Controlled Substances Act between December 2021 and March 2024. The allegations arose from a DEA investigation that included an on-site inspection in March 2024. The pharmacy surrendered its DEA registration for cause in May 2024 and ceased operating in September 2025. The civil settlement resolves the allegations and is not a finding of liability.

Peoria Pharmacist Forged Oxycodone Prescriptions for Personal Use and Sale

Peoria, Arizona

Michael Maurice Jadda, a licensed pharmacist in Peoria, Arizona, was charged June 24, 2026 as part of a 42-defendant Arizona Attorney General health care fraud takedown. Prosecutors allege Jadda generated fraudulent oxycodone prescriptions and diverted the controlled substances for his own use and for sale on the street.

Indiana assisted-living nurse charged over oxycodone cart discrepancies

A former licensed practical nurse at a Carmel assisted living facility is charged with two felonies after the facility found her medication cart held fewer oxycodone doses than expected. A facility review identified 16 instances between April and August 2025 in which oxycodone was withdrawn for two residents without a record of administration. The nurse told investigators she may have forgotten to chart doses on busy nights; the charges are allegations and the case is pending in Hamilton County Superior Court 4.

Tampa Bay Nurse Sentenced to Two Years for Tampering with and Stealing Injectable Opioids

Tampa, Florida

Lauren Hornbuckle, 37, of Seminole, a Florida-licensed registered nurse, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Mary S. Scriven to two years in federal prison for tampering with and stealing morphine, hydromorphone, and fentanyl from a Tampa Bay hospital for her own use. The sentence was imposed June 11, 2026.

Puerto Rico Anesthesia Nurse Indicted for Replacing Fentanyl with Clear Liquid

San Juan, Puerto Rico

Jackeline Correa-Vázquez, 45, was indicted on May 28, 2026 by a federal grand jury in the District of Puerto Rico on eight counts for tampering with fentanyl. She allegedly removed fentanyl citrate from hospital vials and replaced it with clear liquid, and was released on a $10,000 bond pending trial.

Puerto Rico nurse anesthetist indicted on federal charges of tampering with fentanyl vials

A federal grand jury in the District of Puerto Rico returned an eight-count indictment on May 28, 2026 against a 45-year-old advanced practice nurse licensed in anesthesia, announced by the U.S. Attorney's Office on June 2, 2026. Prosecutors allege the nurse accessed and unlawfully obtained vials of fentanyl citrate intended for patient care, removed the drug and replaced it with clear liquid to conceal the theft. The charges are four counts of tampering with consumer products and four counts of obtaining controlled substances by fraud. An indictment is only an allegation, and the defendant is presumed innocent unless proven guilty in court.

VA hospital psychiatric nurse diverted amphetamine/dextroamphetamine and methylphenidate and tampered with patient medications

White River Junction, VT

A registered nurse at the Veterans Administration Medical Center in White River Junction, Vermont, pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court in Burlington to diverting drugs from psychiatric ward patients and tampering with medications between March 2025 and Nov. 20, 2025. The nurse admitted taking amphetamine/dextroamphetamine capsules from patients, removing the regulated ingredients, and returning empty or nearly empty capsules to circulation, and removing methylphenidate tablets and replacing them with hydroxyzine tablets for administration to patients. The nurse also pleaded guilty to a second felony count of acquiring amphetamine/dextroamphetamine and methylphenidate through fraud and deception. Sentencing is planned for Oct. 23, with a plea agreement capping the proposed sentence at 24 months and the maximum penalty at 14 years and $500,000; the nurse agreed to forfeit a New Hampshire nursing license.

New Jersey psychiatrist pleaded guilty to 17 felony counts for invalid stimulant and benzodiazepine prescriptions

In June 2026, federal prosecutors announced that a Cape May County, New Jersey psychiatrist pleaded guilty to 17 felony counts related to issuing invalid prescriptions for controlled substances including Adderall, Vyvanse and Xanax. The physician admitted prescribing outside the usual course of professional practice and without a legitimate medical purpose, including to patients with known histories of substance abuse and overdose. Prosecutors alleged the prescriptions were written with intent to mislead pharmacies, insurers and government benefit programs. The physician surrendered a DEA registration and agreed to give up medical and psychiatry licenses, with sentencing set for October 2026.

Utah nurse charged after police found thousands of prescription pills in home safe

A Herriman, Utah nurse was arrested on June 3, 2026 after police served a search warrant at her home and reported finding thousands of prescription pills and more than $50,000 in cash in a safe. Police said the investigation began in early 2026 and included controlled purchases of pills that tested positive for oxycodone. She was charged with possession with intent to distribute a Schedule I or II controlled substance, possession of a prescription drug for an unlawful purpose, and possession of marijuana; the charges are allegations. State licensing records showed an active registered nurse license with no prior discipline.

Licensed pharmacist charged with diverting oxycodone via fraudulent prescriptions for personal use and sale

Peoria, AZ

A licensed pharmacist was charged with fraud, aggravated identity theft, forgery, and four counts of sale or transportation of narcotic drugs. The state alleges that the pharmacist abused their position to generate fraudulent prescriptions for oxycodone and diverted the controlled substances for personal use and sale. The charges are allegations, and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty.

Puerto Rico Anesthesia Nurse Indicted for Tampering with Fentanyl Vials

Puerto Rico

Jackeline Correa-Vazquez, a Puerto Rico-licensed advanced practice nurse specializing in anesthesia, was indicted by a federal grand jury on May 28, 2026, for tampering with fentanyl citrate vials entrusted to her for patient care. Prosecutors say she removed the fentanyl and refilled the vials with a clear liquid to conceal the diversion, in a scheme beginning no later than March 2023.

Metro-Detroit pharmacy technician pleads guilty to health care fraud and illegal oxycodone distribution

A pharmacy technician who worked at three metro-Detroit pharmacies pleaded guilty in federal court in the Eastern District of Michigan to conspiracy to commit health care fraud and possession with intent to illegally distribute oxycodone. Court documents describe a scheme from 2019 through 2022 in which the technician and a co-conspirator billed Medicare, Medicaid and a private insurer for medications never prescribed or dispensed, using forged prescriptions, causing losses of over $5.6 million. The technician also provided unlawful oxycodone prescriptions to drug traffickers in exchange for cash. Sentencing was scheduled for September 1.

Licensed practical nurse charged with stealing oxycodone from resident at Simpsonville Post Acute

Greenville County, SC

Investigators alleged that a licensed practical nurse at Simpsonville Post Acute knowingly and intentionally took a quantity of oxycodone belonging to a resident on October 8, 2025, and diverted the resident's prescribed oxycodone for personal use. The nurse was arrested and charged with one count of Theft of a Controlled Substance, 1st Offense. The facility reported the alleged misconduct to law enforcement and cooperated with the investigation. The attorney general's office noted that all defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

Metro-Detroit pharmacy technician pleaded guilty to health care fraud and illegal oxycodone distribution

A pharmacy technician who worked at three metro-Detroit pharmacies pleaded guilty in federal court to conspiracy to commit health care fraud and possession with intent to illegally distribute oxycodone. According to court documents described in the report, from 2019 through 2022 the technician and a co-conspirator billed Medicare, Medicaid and a private insurer for prescriptions that were never ordered by a doctor or dispensed, using forged prescriptions, causing over $5.6 million in losses. During the same period the technician provided unlawful oxycodone prescriptions to drug traffickers in exchange for cash.

Indiana Emergency Nurse Sentenced Over Fentanyl Documentation Falsification

Fort Wayne, Indiana

A former emergency-room nurse at Parkview Hospital Randallia in Fort Wayne was sentenced to two years, suspended to probation, after pleading guilty to stealing fentanyl meant for a patient in extreme pain and falsifying records of when and how much medication had been given through the hospital's automated dispensing system.

South Carolina Practical Nurse Charged Over Care Facility Oxycodone Theft

Simpsonville, South Carolina

A licensed practical nurse at Simpsonville Post Acute in Greenville County was charged with theft of a controlled substance after South Carolina's Vulnerable Adults and Medicaid Provider Fraud unit accused her of taking a resident's Oxycodone for her own use.

Montana Health Center Nursing Director Sentenced for Tampering With Fentanyl

Jordan, Montana

Kailyn Marie Smotherman, 35, of Sand Springs, Montana, served as nursing director at Garfield County Health Center. Staff discovered the tampering when they entered her locked office to retrieve a narcotics log and found it in disarray with hospital stock narcotics, an IV pole, tourniquets, needles, replacement vial caps and labels, and suspected blood on surfaces. A search recovered numerous tampered or emptied fentanyl vials and other controlled substances, and an FDA forensic chemist confirmed tampering and adulteration; staff reported concern that patients may have received saline instead of pain medication in the months before the discovery. Smotherman pleaded guilty in December 2025 to tampering with consumer products and was sentenced on April 29, 2026, to three years of probation.

Pennsylvania mail-order pharmacy technician accused of diverting wakefulness-drug tablets

An agent of the Pennsylvania Office of Attorney General accused a pharmacy technician at a health system mail-order pharmacy of drug diversion, according to an affidavit described in an April 2026 news report. The affidavit states that an audit found 300 tablets of solriamfetol unaccounted for, after which the drug was moved into camera view and counted daily. Surveillance later showed the technician carrying an open bottle out of camera range at a time when no order for that drug was being filled, the affidavit says. The accusations are allegations, and the report describes no court disposition.

Chesapeake Hospital Nurse Pleads Guilty to Diverting Hydromorphone From Cancer and Sickle-Cell Patients

Chesapeake, Virginia

Michelle Kollmar, 56, a registered nurse who treated sickle-cell anemia and cancer comfort-care patients, used patients' identifying information to access an automated medication-dispensing system and divert vials of hydromorphone. She later returned syringes — some nearly expired, some containing only water — in place of the medication, including on occasions when she accessed the machine while off duty. Video surveillance captured her diverting and replacing the vials, and she tested positive for hydromorphone she was not prescribed. Kollmar pleaded guilty on April 24, 2026, to obtaining controlled substances by fraud.

Former Nurse Practitioner Pleads Guilty to Redistributing Patients' Unused Opioid Pills

Auburn, New York

Andrew Catalone, 72, of Youngsville, Pennsylvania, pleaded guilty on April 9, 2026 to unlawfully possessing controlled substances with intent to distribute, after collecting unused medications patients returned to him and redistributing the pills without prescriptions. Sentencing is set for August 18, 2026.

Registered nurse removed fentanyl from medication safe without order or documentation and failed to document controlled substance administration/wasting; license revoked

The Board found that a registered nurse removed fentanyl from a medication safe without a written order and without documenting the removal on seven dates while employed at a surgery center. The Board also found the nurse failed to document the administration or wasting of controlled substances, including oxycodone, hydromorphone, tramadol, alprazolam, and lorazepam, and delayed the wasting of controlled substances after dispensing them. At a nursing and rehabilitation center, the nurse wasted oxycodone without allowing the witnessing nurse to verify the medication. The Board revoked the nurse's registered nurse license.

Hospital nurse accused of stealing opioids from patients at Grand Strand Medical Center

Horry County, SC

A registered nurse at Grand Strand Medical Center in Horry County, South Carolina, was arrested and accused of stealing opioid drugs from patients. An arrest warrant alleges the nurse stole oxycodone, hydromorphone, and fentanyl on six separate occasions between January and April 2026 under the guise of providing them to patients. The nurse allegedly either failed to document taking the drugs or fraudulently documented them as administered to a patient. The nurse was charged with theft of controlled substances and violating drug distribution law and was released after posting $12,000 bail.

Kansas Pharmacist Indicted for Stealing Adderall, Vyvanse, Ritalin and Oxycodone from Employer

Maize, Kansas

Logan Marshall Abbott, 33, of Maize, was indicted by a federal grand jury in Wichita on one count of acquiring a controlled substance by deception and subterfuge. He allegedly used his position as a pharmacist to take amphetamine, lisdexamfetamine, methylphenidate, and oxycodone from his former employer.

Denver Hospital Case Coordinator Pleads Guilty to Tampering With Patients' Oxycodone Prescriptions

Denver, Colorado

Shelbi Wolken, 35, of Wheat Ridge, Colorado, worked as a case management coordinator with access to Intermountain Health patients' medical records and personal information. She used that access to pick up patients' oxycodone prescriptions at the in-house pharmacy of Saint Joseph's Hospital in Denver, replacing the stolen pills with over-the-counter medications, and investigators found she had picked up roughly 139 prescriptions for about 127 patients between December 2023 and July 2024. Several affected patients reported significant pain and post-surgical complications after unknowingly taking the substituted pills. Wolken pleaded guilty on March 12, 2026, to tampering with a consumer product.

Vermont hospital endoscopy unit nurse diverted fentanyl and sedatives intended for patients

Barre, Vermont

A licensed practical nurse who worked in the endoscopy unit of Central Vermont Medical Center is alleged to have fraudulently obtained fentanyl, meperidine, and midazolam intended for patients between January and October 2025, for her own personal use. She was charged with one felony count of fraud or deceit involving a regulated drug and pleaded not guilty at her arraignment on March 5, 2026. The hospital said an internal review found no evidence that patient care was compromised, and the employee was terminated.

Rehabilitation center nurse accused of stealing patients' painkillers and drug logs

Sandy, UT

A registered nurse working at a rehabilitation center in Sandy, Utah was arrested after police said medications and drug logs were found in a bag in a garage cabinet, according to a probable cause statement. Police said the prescriptions included painkillers such as Oxycodone, Methadone, Tramadol and Gabapentin, and that patients listed in the logs said they never gave any employee permission to take their medication. The nurse was charged with one felony count of pattern of unlawful activity and several misdemeanors including theft and intentional abuse or neglect of a vulnerable adult; police stated the nurse admitted to stealing medications over the last two months and said he took drugs from patients with multiple packs knowing they would not notice.

Michigan Registered Nurse Summarily Suspended Over Grass Lake Drug Diversion

Grass Lake, Michigan

A Michigan registered nurse in Grass Lake was summarily suspended after the state licensing bureau's disciplinary action report cited an alcohol-related conviction, drug diversion, and incompetence as the basis for action.

Cheshire APRN Illegally Distributed Amphetamines and Benzodiazepines

Cheshire, Connecticut

Michele Rene Muzyka, 61, an Advanced Practice Registered Nurse, unlawfully distributed amphetamines and benzodiazepines to individuals without a legitimate medical need between January 2024 and June 2025. She skipped medical examinations, charged $200 cash per visit, and prescribed Schedule II and IV controlled substances — including to an undercover agent posing as a Medicaid beneficiary. She pleaded guilty on January 21, 2026 to possession with intent to distribute, distribution, and dispensing of controlled substances.

Seattle Anesthesiology Resident Sentenced for Diverting Fentanyl and Hydromorphone While Treating Children

Seattle, Washington

Andrew Voegel-Podadera, 36, a former anesthesiology resident at Seattle Children's Hospital, Harborview Medical Center and UW Medical Center, was sentenced on February 2, 2026 for stealing narcotics and refilling vials with saline. He surrendered his medical license for at least five years.

ER charge nurse self-reported diverting medication wastes for personal use at Ascension St. Vincent Anderson

Anderson, IN

A registered nurse who was a charge nurse in the emergency department self-reported termination from Ascension St. Vincent Anderson for violating the drug policy by diverting medication wastes for personal use. The nurse enrolled in IPRP in August 2025 and signed a three-year monitoring agreement, with a sober date of August 7, 2025, and a diagnosis of moderate opiate use disorder. The board recommended renewal on probation for the length of the monitoring agreement, along with CEUs and referral of pending criminal charges to the attorney general.

Nurse charged with obtaining a controlled substance by fraud or deceit and wasting narcotics at Community North

A registered nurse was charged with obtaining a controlled substance by fraud or deceit, a Level 6 felony, and entered a diversion program that was completed with charges dismissed and expunged in October 2025. The nurse self-reported to ISNAP and entered a monitoring agreement after a suspension of diversion due to wasting of narcotics at work and a positive test for marijuana. The board recommended renewal free and clear, noting compliance with ISNAP and a voluntarily extended monitoring agreement.

Hospital nurse found with Dilaudid and Hydrocodone waste in pocket from work

A registered nurse at Methodist Hospital was charged with possession of a narcotic drug and public intoxication, and was found with waste in a pocket from work consisting of a Dilaudid pill and a Hydrocodone pill. The nurse pled guilty to possession of a narcotic drug in January 2025 and completed probation in January 2026; the nurse was terminated from the hospital in August 2024. The board recommended renewal on indefinite probation, reengagement with ISNAP, and a three-to-five-year monitoring agreement.

Registered nurse alleged to have obtained controlled substances from a Texas pharmacy using unauthorized prescriptions and co-worker prescriber numbers

A registered nurse employed in Texas was alleged to have obtained Zolpidem Tartrate, Eszopiclone, Acetaminophen-Codeine #3, Guaifenesin-Codeine, Butalbital-Acetaminophen-Caffeine, and Hydrocodone from a Texas pharmacy for themself and a family member between January 14, 2022, and May 15, 2024. The nurse allegedly used unauthorized electronically communicated prescriptions and the names and Drug Enforcement Administration numbers of three co-worker prescribers. The nurse neither admitted nor denied the allegations but agreed to a stipulated order placing the registered nurse license on probation for 24 months, with monitoring to begin upon return to supervised nursing practice.

Kansas Pharmacy Technician Indicted for Stealing Adderall and Ritalin

Russell, Kansas

Janice Mae Brown, 39, of Russell, Kansas, was indicted by a federal grand jury in Wichita on one count of acquiring a controlled substance by deception and subterfuge. She allegedly used her position as a pharmacy technician to remove amphetamine and methylphenidate from her employer's inventory without authorization.

Pensacola Pharmacist and Conspirator Charged with Illegal Drug Diversion Conspiracy

Pensacola, Florida

Douglas Craig Reid Jr., 47, a pharmacist, and Martrice Lamar Portis, 47, were charged in federal court with conspiracy to unlawfully dispense and distribute controlled substances. The case is part of the DEA Northern District of Florida enforcement actions targeting pharmacists who divert prescription drugs outside legitimate medical practice.

Portland Mental Health Clinic Pays $20,000 to Settle Controlled Substances Act Violations

Portland, Maine

Riverbird, LLC, a Portland-based mental health clinic, and two of its providers agreed to pay $20,000 to resolve civil Controlled Substances Act claims following a DEA diversion audit. Investigators alleged clinic practitioners knew about drug diversion by one of the clinic's own doctors but failed to report it to DEA, never conducted an initial controlled-substances inventory after a change in clinic ownership, and disposed of a Schedule IV drug with only a handwritten note instead of the required DEA form. The settlement, announced January 26, 2026, includes no admission of liability and a three-year DEA Memorandum of Understanding.

Portland Veterinarian Diverted Controlled Substances, Replaced with Saline

Portland, Oregon

Dr. Brenda Brown-Carlson, a Portland veterinarian, diverted hydromorphone (Schedule II), buprenorphine (Schedule III), and butorphanol (Schedule IV) for personal use and refilled the vials with saline, compromising treatment of more than 200 animals at two clinics. Video surveillance caught her diverting and refilling; she initially denied it, then admitted the conduct. She was sentenced on January 13, 2026 to 60 months of supervised probation after pleading guilty to tampering with drug records, computer crimes, and attempted animal neglect.

Michigan Pharmacist Fined and Probated Over Big Rapids Drug Diversion

Big Rapids, Michigan

A Michigan pharmacist in Big Rapids was fined and placed on probation after the state licensing bureau's disciplinary action report cited drug diversion and incompetence as the basis for action.

Michigan Pharmacist Fined Over Utica Drug Diversion and Alcohol Conviction

Utica, Michigan

A Michigan pharmacist in Utica was fined and placed on probation after the state licensing bureau's disciplinary action report cited an alcohol-related conviction and drug diversion as the basis for action.

Former Boston-Area ICU Nurse Sentenced for Diverting Fentanyl and Versed from Intubated Patient

Needham, Massachusetts

Ariana Foley, 37, of Needham, was sentenced to three years of probation and 100 hours of community service for diverting benzodiazepine medication from a Boston-area hospital while working as an ICU nurse. She checked out Versed and fentanyl for an intubated patient but diverted the drugs instead.

Michigan Registered Nurse Fined and Probated Over Southgate Drug Diversion

Southgate, Michigan

A Michigan registered nurse in Southgate was fined and placed on probation after the state licensing bureau's disciplinary action report cited drug diversion, incompetence, and lack of good moral character as the basis for action.

Littleton Oral Surgery Assistant Sentenced for Tampering With Fentanyl Vials

Littleton, Colorado

Amber June Hyatt, 47, of Evergreen, Colorado, worked as a surgical assistant at an oral surgery practice in Littleton when her roommate found fentanyl vials and vial safety caps in her purse and reported it, prompting the practice to alert the Jefferson County Sheriff's Office. An investigation found boxes of fentanyl citrate in the practice's controlled-substance safe had been tampered with, and lab testing of a subset of vials found seven contained a replacement liquid, one of which was also contaminated with bacteria. Hyatt pleaded guilty to tampering with a consumer product and was sentenced on January 14, 2026, to one year and one day in federal prison plus two years of supervised release.

Michigan Social Worker Probated Over Hamtramck Drug Diversion

Hamtramck, Michigan

A Michigan licensed master's social worker in Hamtramck was placed on probation upon reinstatement after the state licensing bureau's disciplinary action report cited drug diversion and an order violation as the basis for action.

Tennessee EMS board accepts surrender of emergency medical technician over Hornbeak diversion

Hornbeak, Tennessee

The Tennessee Board of Emergency Medical Services disciplined a advanced emergency medical technician in Hornbeak over controlled-substance diversion, according to the January 2026 disciplinary action report. The order records that the licensee diverted controlled substances from their employer, and the board accepted a voluntary surrender of the licence. A board order is an administrative finding on the board's own investigation, not a criminal conviction, and the report states no quantity.

Tennessee EMS board revokes paramedic over Hendersonville diversion

Hendersonville, Tennessee

The Tennessee Board of Emergency Medical Services disciplined a paramedic in Hendersonville over controlled-substance diversion, according to the January 2026 disciplinary action report. The order records that the licensee diverted controlled substances from their employer, and the board revoked the licence. A board order is an administrative finding on the board's own investigation, not a criminal conviction, and the report states no quantity.

South Carolina Unlicensed Caregiver Charged Over Care Facility Oxycodone Theft

Piedmont, South Carolina

The South Carolina Attorney General's office announced charges against a Piedmont woman who continued to practice and hold herself out as a Director of Nursing at Cherrydale Post Acute in Greenville after her nursing license had been suspended by the South Carolina Board of Nursing, and who is also accused of stealing a quantity of Oxycodone from another person.

Appleton Nurse Practitioner Sentenced for Unlawful Opioid Prescribing Scheme

Appleton, Wisconsin

Jessica Friday, an advanced practice nurse practitioner from Appleton, Wisconsin, was sentenced December 18, 2025 to 16 months in federal prison for distributing controlled substances outside the usual course of professional practice. Between 2020 and 2024, Friday prescribed opioids including oxycodone to patients without medical necessity, under an arrangement where patients filled the prescriptions and gave her half or more of the pills for her own use.

Nursing Director Pleads Guilty to Tampering With Fentanyl at Montana Health Center

Jordan, Montana

The Director of Nursing at Garfield County Health Center in Jordan, Montana, was found in January 2023 to have tampered with numerous vials of fentanyl and other controlled substances in her locked office, removing and replacing caps or emptying vials entirely. Staff who entered her office to retrieve a narcotics log discovered hospital stock narcotics, IV equipment, replacement vial caps and labels, and what appeared to be blood on surfaces, then reported concerns that patients may have received saline instead of pain medication. An FDA forensic chemist confirmed the seized containers had been tampered with and adulterated. She pleaded guilty in December 2025 to tampering with a consumer product and faces sentencing in 2026.

Delaware Medical Biller Indicted for Diverting Opioids Using Stolen Provider Identities

Delaware

A federal grand jury in Wilmington indicted Ty Mauldin on December 15, 2025, for using the stolen professional-licensure information of medical providers he worked with to order thousands of opioid pills from wholesale suppliers and prescribe himself opioids — all without those providers' knowledge. Mauldin, a medical biller and credentialer, also falsified his own medical records and posed as a licensed nurse to obtain additional controlled substances and bill insurers.

Lawton pharmacy technician charged after hydrocodone tablets found spilling from clothing

According to the Board of Pharmacy complaint, on October 23, 2025 the pharmacist-in-charge at a Lawton retail pharmacy noticed tablets on the floor beneath a technician who was filling prescriptions and asked whether they were coming from the technician's clothing. The technician reportedly admitted to diverting 30 hydrocodone-acetaminophen tablets and was terminated the same day. The pharmacy's amended DEA loss report later listed 1,538 hydrocodone-acetaminophen tablets and 56 dextroamphetamine-amphetamine tablets missing, and a felony larceny charge was filed in Comanche County District Court in December 2025 that remained pending when the Board complaint was filed.

Nurse Anesthetist Diverted Fentanyl Waste for Months While AI Surveillance Missed It (Erlanger Baroness)

Chattanooga, Tennessee

A nurse anesthetist at Erlanger Baroness, the largest hospital in Chattanooga, admitted diverting unused fentanyl left over after surgeries for months, while the hospital's AI-powered medication monitoring system failed to flag missing drugs and other dispensing and waste documentation inconsistencies, according to a Tennessee Board of Nursing consent order.

Pharmacy technician diverted alprazolam, zolpidem and other controlled substances from a national pharmacy chain in Easton, Maryland, by taking pills from bottles

Easton, MD

The Board found that a pharmacy technician employed by a national pharmacy chain at two stores in Easton, Maryland, diverted multiple controlled substances. The pharmacy's internal investigation stated that the technician admitted stealing Ambien (zolpidem), Soma (carisoprodol), Xanax (alprazolam), diazepam, and Lunesta (eszopiclone) from one store, and surveillance footage showed the technician removing pills from a lab coat pocket and consuming several pills in the back of a store. A DEA Form 106 reported lost or stolen alprazolam, zolpidem, carisoprodol, clonazepam, diazepam, and eszopiclone. The technician pleaded guilty to misdemeanor theft, and the Board revoked the pharmacy technician registration.

Unlicensed Director of Nursing at Cherrydale Post Acute charged with stealing oxycodone from a person

Greenville, SC

A person employed as Director of Nursing at Cherrydale Post Acute in Greenville, SC, was arrested and charged after investigators alleged she stole a quantity of oxycodone, a Schedule II controlled substance, from another person with intent to permanently deprive that person of the medication. The document also alleges she practiced nursing and used the title Director of Nursing without an active license, including on June 20 and June 23, 2025. She was charged with theft of a controlled substance and unlicensed practice, and booked into the Greenville County Detention Center. All defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

Pharmacist diverted phentermine and other prescription drugs using fictitious patient profiles at a Wicomico County pharmacy

Wicomico County, MD

A pharmacist at a pharmacy in Wicomico County, Maryland, admitted creating a fictitious patient profile and using it to fill and purchase prescriptions for herself, including phentermine, cyclobenzaprine, tizanidine, and gabapentin. The Board found that the pharmacist diverted prescription drugs and/or controlled dangerous substances, with four phentermine prescriptions identified as suspicious and purchased using cash and two patient profiles. The pharmacist's license was suspended for at least one year effective April 8, 2025, with a $1,000 fine and a substance use evaluation; in a related criminal case, the pharmacist entered an agreement statement of facts to one count of obtaining a prescription drug by fraud and received probation before judgment and one year of unsupervised probation.

Nevada nurse anesthetist placed on probation for drug diversion

The Nevada State Board of Nursing listed an Agreement for Probation with a certified registered nurse anesthetist among its disciplinary actions for the period of October 16 through December 8, 2025. The cited grounds were unprofessional conduct and diverting supplies, equipment or drugs for personal or unauthorized use. The published list does not describe the drug involved, the practice setting or how the conduct came to light.

Nevada registered nurse surrendered license over controlled-substance use and drug diversion

A registered nurse voluntarily surrendered a Nevada license in lieu of other disciplinary action, according to the Nevada State Board of Nursing's list of actions for October 16 through December 8, 2025. The cited grounds included use of controlled substances and/or alcohol, unprofessional conduct, diverting equipment or drugs for personal or unauthorized use, and departure from customary standards of practice. The published list gives no details about the drug, the setting or how the conduct was identified.

New Hampshire emergency department nurse pleaded guilty after keeping partial opioid doses

A former emergency department nurse at a Keene regional medical center pleaded guilty in Cheshire County Superior Court to obtaining morphine by fraud after investigators found he had taken opioids intended for patients. Prosecutors alleged that between June 2024 and January 2025 he repeatedly administered only partial doses of fentanyl, morphine and hydromorphone and kept the remainder. The court imposed a one-to-four-year state prison sentence, fully suspended on conditions including two years of probation and substance use disorder treatment. The state Board of Nursing suspended his license and he later surrendered it.

Emergency Room Nurse Sentenced for Tampering With Fentanyl Vials at Michigan Hospital

Grosse Pointe Park, Michigan

A registered nurse in the emergency room at Ascension St. John Hospital in Detroit removed fentanyl from vials intended for patients, replaced it with another liquid, and returned the tampered vials to the hospital's locked drug storage system. He also stole fentanyl vials for personal use in a pattern of thefts from May through August 2022. The hospital discovered the tampering and thefts and immediately removed him from his position. He was sentenced in November 2025 to two years in federal prison for tampering with a consumer product.

Michigan Pharmacist Fined Over West Bloomfield Drug Diversion

West Bloomfield, Michigan

A Michigan pharmacist in West Bloomfield was fined after the state licensing bureau's disciplinary action report cited drug diversion and incompetence as the basis for action.

Oklahoma pharmacy technician permit permanently revoked after pharmacy reported 3,762 tablets lost

On June 23, 2025 the Oklahoma State Board of Pharmacy received a DEA-106 form from a pharmacy reporting the theft or loss of 3,762 tablets. After a hearing on November 18, 2025 the Board concluded that clear and convincing evidence established the technician had violated the Oklahoma Pharmacy Act. The Board proposed permanent revocation of the technician's permit and a $2,000 fine, and the Attorney General's office found the proposed action consistent with state policy.

Anchorage Nurse Practitioner Sentenced for Prescribing Opioids Without Medical Purpose

Anchorage, Alaska

An Anchorage jury convicted advanced nurse practitioner Kris Rhodes Kile in May 2025 of 12 felony counts of misconduct involving a controlled substance after evidence showed she prescribed fentanyl, oxycodone, hydrocodone, hydromorphone, and diazepam to six patients between June 2016 and November 2018 with no legitimate medical purpose. On November 14, 2025, an Anchorage Superior Court judge sentenced Kile to three years to serve, finding her prospects for rehabilitation "guarded" and her attitude "steadfastly unrepentant."

Massachusetts Hospice Nurse Indicted for Swapping Dementia Patient's Oxycodone with Household Cleaner

Amesbury, Massachusetts

Lori Robertson, a nurse from Salem, New Hampshire, was indicted by a federal grand jury and arrested in late October 2025 for allegedly removing liquid oxycodone from a non-verbal dementia patient's medication at an Amesbury facility. She allegedly refilled it with a household cleaning chemical.

Hospital lead pharmacy technician diverted Oxycodone by substituting Fludrocortisone during prepackaging for automated dispensing system

At a hospital in Prince George's County, Maryland, a lead pharmacy technician was investigated for diverting Oxycodone. The Board found the technician switched Oxycodone 5 mg tablets with Fludrocortisone 0.1 mg tablets during prepackaging to refill an automated medication dispensing system and entered zero-count refills to hide the swap. The technician admitted at the evidentiary hearing to switching the drugs and personally ingesting the Oxycodone. The Board revoked the technician's registration.

Nurse anesthetist at a Chattanooga hospital admitted diverting leftover fentanyl from surgeries, state consent order says

Chattanooga, TN

According to a Tennessee Board of Nursing consent order, a nurse anesthetist at Erlanger Baroness Hospital in Chattanooga admitted diverting unused fentanyl that would otherwise have been wasted after surgical procedures, starting in March 2025 and increasing to daily use by June. Coworkers reported the nurse appeared impaired while on duty in the surgery center around June 30, 2025; the nurse failed a drug test and was fired. The board placed the license on probation while the nurse attended drug counseling, and the nurse has not been charged with any crime related to the case. The hospital's audit found roughly five instances in which its automated drug-diversion monitoring software did not flag missing drugs, along with dispensing and waste-documentation inconsistencies the system should have flagged.

Agency affiliated counselor alleged to have ingested unprescribed methadone while transporting clients

In November 2025 the Department of Health charged an agency affiliated counselor with unprofessional conduct. In October 2023, the counselor allegedly ingested unprescribed methadone while transporting clients, became unresponsive in a car and required multiple doses of Narcan. The counselor later admitted taking the methadone and was terminated by their employer.

California pharmacist applicant filled hydrocodone prescription issued without a prescriber-patient relationship

The California State Board of Pharmacy filed a Statement of Issues against an applicant for a pharmacist license over conduct in April 2013. The Board alleged the applicant asked a physician to authorize prescriptions for two dangerous drugs and one controlled substance with no prescriber-patient relationship or examination, then filled, picked up and paid for them, and alleged the applicant possessed hydrocodone and marijuana without a prescription. The matter was resolved by stipulated settlement: the license is granted, immediately revoked, the revocation stayed, and the license placed on probation for three years, effective October 15, 2025.

Licensed practical nurse accused of stealing oxycodone from a resident at Simpsonville Post Acute

Simpsonville, SC

In October 2025, a licensed practical nurse at Simpsonville Post Acute in Greenville County, South Carolina, was charged with one count of a controlled substance, first offense. The attorney general's Vulnerable Adults and Medicaid Provider Fraud unit alleged the nurse knowingly and intentionally took a quantity of oxycodone from a resident of the facility. The facility reported the conduct to law enforcement and cooperated with the investigation. The charge is a felony punishable by up to five years in prison, a fine of up to $5,000, or both.

Veterinarian charged with issuing controlled substance prescriptions without documentation and providing medications for non-patient use

Snohomish County, Washington

In October 2025, the Veterinary Board of Governors charged a veterinarian with unprofessional conduct. Between June 2020 and August 2024, the veterinarian allegedly prescribed medications for two animals without establishing valid client relationships or conducting physical examinations, altered medical records and invoices, and issued multiple controlled substance prescriptions without documentation or payment. The veterinarian also allegedly provided these medications for non-patient use and misrepresented the purpose of prescriptions to colleagues.

Yale New Haven Hospital nurse sentenced to federal prison for lorazepam tampering

A former registered nurse at a New Haven hospital was sentenced to 16 months in federal prison for tampering with and stealing lorazepam vials. According to the report, the nurse removed at least one vial from a secure storage location, replaced part of its contents with saline, and returned it. The missing items were found in the nurse's backpack during staff searches conducted as part of a hospital drug tampering investigation.

Kansas City, Kansas retail pharmacy settles controlled substance recordkeeping allegations

The owner of a retail pharmacy in Kansas City, Kansas entered into a civil settlement with the federal government, agreeing to pay $200,000 to resolve allegations of violating civil provisions of the Controlled Substances Act. The government alleged that between December 31, 2021 and about February 23, 2023 the pharmacy failed to maintain complete and accurate records and inventories of controlled substances and failed to keep certification records for retail sales required under the Combat Methamphetamine Epidemic Act. The claims are allegations only and there has been no determination of liability.

Chicago pharmacy settles federal claims after technicians diverted hydrocodone

The U.S. Attorney's Office for the Northern District of Illinois reached a civil settlement with a Chicago retail pharmacy over alleged Controlled Substances Act violations, including inadequate recordkeeping and ineffective controls against theft and diversion. Between 2015 and 2017, two pharmacy technicians at the pharmacy stole more than 56,000 hydrocodone pills and sold them, with one falsifying inventory records to conceal the theft; both pleaded guilty to federal drug charges and were sentenced in 2019. Under the settlement the pharmacy agreed to pay a $250,000 penalty and had already completed obligations under a memorandum of agreement with the DEA. The settlement is not an admission of liability by the pharmacy.

Chicago pharmacy settles federal Controlled Substances Act claims after technician hydrocodone thefts

The U.S. Attorney's Office for the Northern District of Illinois announced a civil settlement with a Chicago pharmacy over alleged Controlled Substances Act violations that allegedly allowed opioids to be diverted between 2015 and 2017. During that period two pharmacy technicians stole more than 56,000 hydrocodone pills and were sentenced in 2019 to five years and one year in prison. Under the settlement the pharmacy agreed to pay a $250,000 penalty; the settlement is not an admission of liability.

Chicago pharmacy settles Controlled Substances Act claims after technicians stole hydrocodone

The U.S. Attorney's Office for the Northern District of Illinois announced a settlement with a Chicago pharmacy over alleged Controlled Substances Act violations that, according to the office, enabled the diversion of opioids over an extended period. A Drug Enforcement Administration inspection and audit found inadequate records for the receipt and disposition of controlled substances and a lack of effective controls against theft and diversion. According to the release, two pharmacy technicians conspired between 2015 and 2017 to steal more than 56,000 hydrocodone pills and sell them outside the pharmacy. The settlement resolves alleged violations and is not a finding of liability.

Registered nurse stole fentanyl vials at work and altered medication logs to conceal theft

A registered nurse admitted to stealing 255 vials of fentanyl 100 mcg/2 mL and altering medication logs to conceal the theft. The nurse also tested positive for fentanyl on a for-cause drug screen at work and pleaded guilty in federal court to felony acquiring or obtaining possession of a controlled substance by misrepresentation, fraud, forgery, deception or subterfuge. The Board placed the nurse's license on 36 months of probation, including restrictions on access to narcotics or controlled substances.

Michigan Practical Nurse Fined and Probated Over Gladstone Drug Diversion

Gladstone, Michigan

A Michigan licensed practical nurse in Gladstone was fined and placed on probation after the state licensing bureau's disciplinary action report cited drug diversion and incompetence as the basis for action.

Illinois hospital nurse fired over suspected opioid diversion loses federal discrimination appeal

A hospital nurse was terminated after two controlled opioids were improperly removed from the hospital's secure dispensing system on a shift during which coworkers reported she appeared disoriented and drowsy. A drug test was positive for opiates, which she attributed to a prescribed medication taken the night before. She sued for discrimination and retaliation; in August 2025 the Seventh Circuit affirmed judgment for the hospital while stating that whether the diversion suspicion was correct was not before the court.

Oklahoma grocery-chain pharmacy technician admitted stealing and selling hydrocodone and alprazolam

On May 9, 2025 the Oklahoma State Board of Pharmacy received a DEA 106 loss report from a grocery-chain pharmacy where a technician was employed. In a voluntary written statement on May 13, 2025 the technician admitted stealing one 60-tablet bottle of alprazolam for personal use, selling two 100-tablet stock bottles of hydrocodone at $5 per pill to acquaintances, and passing a 140-tablet bottle of hydrocodone-acetaminophen through the pharmacy drive-thru. The technician was terminated that day, the permit was later cancelled for non-renewal, and after an August 13, 2025 hearing the Board proposed permanent revocation and a $2,000 fine.

Stamford Nurse Tampered with Hydromorphone and Fentanyl Vials

Stamford, Connecticut

Kristen Carotenuto, 35, a nurse at an outpatient surgical center in Stamford, removed hydromorphone and fentanyl vials from secure storage in December 2024, extracted the drugs with a syringe for personal use, refilled the vials with saline or water, and returned them to storage where they could be distributed to patients. She pleaded guilty to tampering with a consumer product on August 7, 2025, and was sentenced to five months in prison, three years of supervised release, and a $5,000 fine. There is no evidence any patient received a tampered vial.

Lakeland Nurse Sentenced to 5+ Years for Stealing Fentanyl at Five Tampa Bay Hospitals

Lakeland, Florida

Eric Brewer, 30, of Lakeland, a Florida-licensed nurse who worked at hospitals across the Tampa Bay area, was sentenced to five years and three months in federal prison for tampering with and stealing fentanyl at five different hospitals. He diluted a fentanyl IV bag by about 50 percent with saline.

Tennessee Board of Pharmacy fines pharmacist over Dayton diversion

The Tennessee Board of Pharmacy disciplined a pharmacist in Dayton over controlled-substance diversion, according to the August 2025 disciplinary action report. The order records that the licensee diverted controlled substances from their employer, and the board assessed a civil penalty. A board order is an administrative finding on the board's own investigation, not a criminal conviction, and the report states no quantity.

Tennessee Board of Pharmacy suspends pharmacist over Nashville diversion

Nashville, Tennessee

The Tennessee Board of Pharmacy disciplined a pharmacist in Nashville over controlled-substance diversion, according to the August 2025 disciplinary action report. The order records that the licensee diverted controlled substances from their employer, and the board suspended the licence. A board order is an administrative finding on the board's own investigation, not a criminal conviction, and the report states no quantity.

Certified nursing assistant alleged to have diverted controlled substances from a resident at an assisted living facility

Whatcom County, WA

In August 2025, the Washington State Department of Health charged a certified nursing assistant with unprofessional conduct. Between August and October 2021, the nursing assistant allegedly diverted controlled substances from a resident at an assisted living facility and attempted to conceal the theft.

Pharmacy Owner Sentenced for Diverting Opioids From His Own Iowa Pharmacy

Fairfield, Iowa

The pharmacist-owner and operator of Summit Pharmacy of Iowa in Fairfield diverted thousands of prescription pills from his own pharmacy for personal use between June 2022 and November 2023. He obtained the pills by ordering stock and not recording it in inventory, taking pills directly from pharmacy stock, and pulling pills from the pharmacy's controlled-substance take-back collection bin, ultimately diverting more than 3,500 oxycodone and hydrocodone pills and over 400 carisoprodol pills. He was sentenced in July 2025 to probation and a fine.

Indiana critical access hospital faces board complaint after DEA admonition over unreported diversion

An Indiana critical access hospital appeared before the Board of Pharmacy on an order to show cause after receiving a letter of admonition from the DEA related to what the minutes call a significant diversion. Hospital counsel described protocol changes made in response and said the DEA was satisfied with corrective actions, while board members asked why the diversion was not immediately reported. The board set aside the order to show cause and voted unanimously to have administrative complaints filed against the hospital and against its drug wholesaler; no findings had been made at that stage.

Indiana pharmacy board rejects settlement over chain pharmacy diversion tied to employee case

The Indiana Board of Pharmacy considered a proposed settlement with a chain pharmacy location arising from an employee diversion case heard earlier in 2025. According to the minutes, the diversion took place over about 10 days, but the state could prove only one instance, which capped the available fine at $1,000. Board members said diversion cases must be taken seriously, unanimously denied the settlement, and directed that a final hearing be held no later than September 2025; no finding against the pharmacy had been made.

Travel Nurse Sentenced for Diverting Hydromorphone at West Virginia Hospital

Beckley, West Virginia

A travel nurse employed at Raleigh General Hospital in Beckley, West Virginia, unlawfully accessed patients' identifiable health information to divert hydromorphone for her own use from automated medication dispensing/monitoring machines. She used her own biometrics and a patient's health information to open the machine's secure drawer, siphoned off a portion of the hydromorphone, diluted the remaining vial contents to disguise the theft, and canceled or nulled the transactions to conceal the removal. She carried out the scheme repeatedly between September 2021 and February 2022. She was sentenced in July 2025 to five years in prison, and the West Virginia Board of Registered Nurses indefinitely suspended her license.

Eastern Pennsylvania hospital network pays $2.75 million to resolve controlled substances allegations

Federal prosecutors announced in July 2025 that a Lehigh Valley hospital network agreed to pay $2,750,000 to resolve allegations that it failed to comply with Controlled Substances Act provisions meant to prevent diversion of controlled substances. The announcement describes a civil resolution of allegations, not a finding or admission of liability. The network worked with the United States Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania and the Drug Enforcement Administration to identify potential violations and develop better practices.

Pennsylvania health system pays $2.75M to resolve DOJ claims over pharmacy technician diversion

A Pennsylvania health system agreed to pay $2.75 million to resolve U.S. Department of Justice claims that it failed to prevent theft and diversion of controlled substances from its hospital pharmacies. Prosecutors alleged that a pharmacy technician diverted drugs from one of the system's hospitals, forged paperwork and used another employee's login credentials to conceal the activity. According to the report, the health system admitted it failed to maintain adequate security and record keeping over controlled substances; the technician was not named and no charges against that individual were described.

Registered nurse accused of obtaining controlled substance by fraud from resident's supply at North Hills Lifecare and Rehab

Fort Smith, AR

According to the attorney general's announcement, a registered nurse at North Hills Lifecare and Rehab in Fort Smith was arrested on one count of Obtaining Drugs by Fraud, a Class D felony. The nurse allegedly signed out two tablets of a controlled substance from a resident's prescription supply even though the resident had been discharged and transferred to another unit. Documentation indicated the medication was administered, but the resident did not receive it, and the two tablets were later found missing from inventory.

Travel nurse at Beckley hospital diverted hydromorphone, sentenced to five years

A travel nurse from Kentucky who worked at a Beckley, West Virginia hospital was sentenced in federal court to five years in prison followed by three years of supervised release for obtaining a controlled substance by fraud and wrongful disclosure of individually identifiable health information. Prosecutors said that over several months in late 2021 and early 2022 the nurse accessed patient information to divert hydromorphone, removed portions of doses from automated dispensing cabinets, diluted vials so they appeared full, and voided transactions to conceal the activity. The West Virginia Board of Registered Nurses has indefinitely suspended the nurse's ability to practice in the state.

Pharmacist Sentenced for Diverting Controlled Substances From Mason City Pharmacies

Mason City, Iowa

A pharmacist who worked at three different pharmacies in Mason City, Iowa, between 2008 and 2023 diverted a range of controlled substances — including codeine, phentermine, alprazolam, clonazepam, lorazepam, pregabalin, and tramadol — for her own use. She created unauthorized prescriptions and falsified prescription and inventory records in the names of existing patients, primarily while the pharmacy was closed, then filled and paid for the prescriptions herself. She pleaded guilty in February 2025 to acquiring a controlled substance by fraud and misrepresentation and was sentenced in June 2025.

Registered nurse diverted and abused controlled substances from places of employment

A registered nurse admitted to diverting controlled substances from places of employment and abusing those controlled substances on multiple occasions in 2021, 2022, 2023, and 2024. The nurse also failed to answer truthfully about drug diversion and substance abuse on license renewal applications and during a Board investigation, and had medication documentation discrepancies including unaccounted medications and documenting administrations before logging out. The Board imposed suspension with conditions followed by probation.

Facility Administrator Sentenced for Diverting Opioids From Five Senior-Care Facilities

Iowa

An administrator employed at nursing and senior living facilities in the Southern District of Iowa diverted prescription drugs from at least five healthcare facilities between September 2021 and November 2022. She obtained fentanyl patches, hydrocodone, morphine, and oxycodone by stealing them from the facilities' narcotics emergency kits and locked medication carts and rooms. She was sentenced in May 2025 to probation, a fine, and restitution.

Illinois nursing-facility administrator sentenced to probation for diverting opioids from emergency kits and medication carts

A Colona, Illinois woman who worked as an administrator at nursing and senior living facilities was sentenced on May 28, 2025 in federal court in the Southern District of Iowa for diverting prescription drugs. According to public court documents cited by HHS-OIG, she obtained fentanyl patches, hydrocodone, morphine and oxycodone from at least five healthcare facilities between at least September 2021 and November 2022 by taking them from narcotics emergency kits and locked medication carts and rooms. She received three years of probation and was ordered to pay $1,975.61 in restitution, a $5,000 fine and a $200 special assessment. The source does not state in which state the facilities were located.

Oklahoma hospital night-shift nurse disciplined after morphine waste questioned and patient reported no dose

In May 2025 a registered nurse entered an agreed stipulated order with the Oklahoma Board of Nursing over a March 2024 night shift at a hospital. The order recites that the nurse displayed impaired behavior, obtained morphine from a colleague for a patient and charted it as administered, while the patient later reported not having received it; the nurse declined a reasonable-suspicion drug test and was terminated. The order imposed a severe reprimand, a $500 administrative penalty, education courses and twice-monthly body fluid testing for 12 months. After reviewing the nurse's required evaluation in November 2025, the Board proposed referral to its Peer Assistance Program with the license temporarily suspended pending entry.

Oklahoma pharmacy technician altered oxycodone counts under coworkers' credentials and sold the pills

The Oklahoma State Board of Pharmacy found at a May 7, 2025 hearing that a pharmacy technician was terminated on March 11, 2025 for theft after admitting to manually altering inventory counts for oxycodone 10 mg and 15 mg between January 8 and March 9, 2025, using the credentials of other pharmacy staff. The Board found the technician took 531 10 mg tablets and 640 15 mg tablets, a total of 1,171. The technician stated the oxycodone was not for personal use but admitted to selling it for $900 or more per bottle, and the Board proposed permanent revocation of the permit and a $2,000 fine.

Pharmacist and Spouse Sentenced for Diverting Opioids From Kentucky Pharmacy

Franklin, Kentucky

A pharmacist in Franklin, Kentucky, and his wife diverted oxycodone and hydrocodone from his pharmacy between May 2020 and January 2023, with the wife selling or trading the drugs for cocaine, methamphetamine, and marijuana. The pharmacist also fraudulently billed Kentucky Medicaid and private insurers for prescriptions never ordered or dispensed as billed, used another provider's identity to issue prescriptions without consent, and falsely reported a pharmacy robbery to the DEA to cover a shortage. Both were sentenced to federal prison and ordered to pay restitution.

Registered nurse obtained Vyvanse from workplace without authorization and self-administered

A registered nurse admitted to obtaining a generic equivalent of Vyvanse from their workplace without a medical order or authorization, taking it home, and administering it to themselves. The Board placed the nurse's license on a 36-month probation.

Detroit-area emergency room nurse pleads guilty to tampering with fentanyl vials

A registered nurse who worked in the emergency room of a Detroit-area hospital pleaded guilty in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan to tampering with a consumer product, fentanyl. In the plea the nurse admitted removing fentanyl from vials intended for emergency room patients, refilling them with another liquid, returning them to the locked drug storage system, and stealing fentanyl vials over several months. The hospital removed the nurse in August 2022 after discovering the tampering and thefts, and sentencing was scheduled for September 11, 2025.

Southern Colorado pharmacy paid $250,000 to resolve allegations of years of unlawful controlled-substance dispensing

The corporate operator of a pharmacy in Trinidad, Colorado agreed to pay $250,000 to resolve allegations by the U.S. Attorney's Office that it unlawfully dispensed controlled substances over a period of years. The government alleged the conduct violated the Controlled Substances Act and contributed to public harms including the unlawful diversion of drugs. The matter was investigated by the DEA's Rocky Mountain Division and was resolved through a civil settlement, which is not a finding of liability.

New Haven retail pharmacy paid $192K over controlled substance recordkeeping failures

A New Haven retail pharmacy entered into a civil settlement with the federal government and paid $192,000 to resolve allegations that it violated civil provisions of the Controlled Substances Act. The government alleged that between January 2022 and May 2024 the pharmacy failed to keep complete and accurate records of the receipt and dispensing of controlled substances, failed to perform a biennial inventory, allowed an unauthorized individual to sign DEA order forms on at least eight occasions, and did not retain required order forms and invoices. The pharmacy agreed to a three-year memorandum of agreement with the DEA. The settlement is not a finding of liability.

Michigan Registered Nurse Summarily Suspended Over Canton Drug Diversion

Canton, Michigan

A Michigan registered nurse in Canton was summarily suspended after the state licensing bureau's disciplinary action report cited drug diversion, along with impaired conduct/practice/condition and substance use disorder, as the basis for action.

Michigan Pharmacy Technician Surrenders License Over Westland Drug Diversion

Westland, Michigan

A Michigan pharmacy technician in Westland voluntarily surrendered a license after the state licensing bureau's disciplinary action report cited drug diversion, incompetence, and lack of good moral character as the basis for action.

Michigan Registered Nurse Summarily Suspended Over Chesaning Drug Diversion

Chesaning, Michigan

A Michigan registered nurse in Chesaning was summarily suspended after the state licensing bureau's disciplinary action report cited drug diversion as the basis for action.

Traveling Nurse Sentenced for Tampering With Morphine at Massachusetts Rehabilitation Facility

Danvers, Massachusetts

A traveling nurse assigned by a healthcare staffing company to nursing and rehabilitation facilities across Massachusetts diverted morphine from patient medication bottles, diluting the contents so bottles appeared full. She had previously surrendered her New Hampshire nursing license after a similar tampering investigation but continued practicing under her Massachusetts license. At a rehabilitation center in Danvers, staff noticed a leaking, discolored morphine bottle in April 2022, and law enforcement ran a controlled operation comparing sealed versus tampered bottles before and after her shift, confirming she was the only person with access. She pleaded guilty in November 2024 and was sentenced in April 2025.

Hospital pharmacist diverted ketamine and falsified destruction records at Mercy Hospital Anderson Pharmacy

Cincinnati, OH

The Board found that a pharmacist at Mercy Hospital Anderson Pharmacy in Cincinnati, Ohio, diverted ketamine from his employer. The Board found he stole the ketamine over about six months, sold two bottles for $100 each, and provided ketamine to a drug dealer. The Board also found he falsified drug destruction records by showing a vial to a witness, having the form signed, then leaving without destroying the drugs. The Board permanently revoked the pharmacist license.

Pharmacist diverted phentermine and other prescription drugs from a pharmacy using fictitious patient profiles

Wicomico County, MD

Investigative findings state that a pharmacist at a pharmacy in Wicomico County, Maryland, created fictitious patient profiles and used them to fill and purchase prescriptions for herself, including phentermine, a Schedule IV controlled substance, and other prescription drugs. The pharmacist admitted creating a fictitious patient profile and using it to fill and purchase prescriptions, and the Board found reason to believe the pharmacist diverted multiple prescription drugs and/or CDS. The pharmacist's license was summarily suspended, and the pharmacist was charged with three counts of obtaining a prescription drug by fraud.

Nevada registered nurse reprimanded for drug diversion in spring 2025 board actions

A registered nurse entered an Agreement for Reprimand and Continuing Education with the Nevada State Board of Nursing during the reporting period of February 3 through April 10, 2025. The cited grounds were unprofessional conduct, diverting supplies, equipment or drugs for personal or unauthorized use, and departure from customary standards of practice. The published list does not state the drug, the facility or how the diversion was detected.

Nebraska Nurse Charged Over Surgery Center Propofol and Fentanyl Theft

North Platte, Nebraska

A former registered nurse at North Platte Surgery Center was charged in federal court with acquiring a controlled substance by fraud after admitting to his employer that he took propofol and fentanyl from the facility for personal use.

Michigan Nurse Practitioner Summarily Suspended Over Bay City Drug Diversion

Bay City, Michigan

A Michigan registered nurse and nurse practitioner in Bay City was summarily suspended after the state licensing bureau's disciplinary action report cited drug diversion, incompetence, and mental/physical inability to practice as the basis for action.

Contract Nurse Sentenced for Tampering With Morphine at Kentucky Elder-Care Facility

Lawrenceburg, Kentucky

A contract registered nurse working at a health care facility in Lawrenceburg, Kentucky, that treats elderly and infirm patients stole morphine prescribed for three patients she was treating, replacing it with water and blue food coloring to mimic the real medication. She took at least seven syringes of stolen morphine and administered the tampered substance to at least one patient. She was sentenced in March 2025 to 60 months in federal prison for tampering with a consumer product.

Kentucky Nurse Sentenced Over Elder-Care Morphine Substitution

Lawrenceburg, Kentucky

A contract registered nurse was sentenced to 60 months in federal prison for stealing morphine prescribed to three elderly, seriously ill patients at an Anderson County, Kentucky healthcare facility and replacing it with a mixture of water and blue food coloring made to resemble the real medication.

Cardiac Catheterization Lab Nurse Sentenced for Tampering With Fentanyl at Miami Hospital

Miami, Florida

A registered nurse working in a Miami hospital's cardiac catheterization lab used a syringe to extract medical-grade fentanyl and midazolam from vials for his own use during procedures such as catheterization and stent placement, replacing the contents with saline. He also retrieved empty vials from a biohazard waste bin, filled them with saline, and swapped them in to cover the theft, exposing patients to possible bloodborne-disease contamination from waste-bin material. The hospital fired him, notified affected patients, and offered free blood testing; no acute infections were found. He pleaded guilty in December 2024 and was sentenced in March 2025.

South Carolina Practical Nurse Charged Over Nursing Home Tramadol Theft

Myrtle Beach, South Carolina

The South Carolina Attorney General's office announced charges against a licensed practical nurse at Angel Oak Nursing and Rehabilitation Center in Myrtle Beach, accused of stealing Tramadol belonging to two residents for her own use while depriving them of prescribed medication.

UCSF pediatric anesthesiologist arrested after being found unconscious with a propofol syringe

A UCSF pediatric anesthesiologist was arrested on March 5, 2025, after reportedly being found unconscious at the facility with an IV needle and a syringe containing propofol, according to a San Francisco Chronicle report relayed by a law-firm blog. The physician's attorney said she had been suspended for 10 days in January, transferred campuses, and later took a voluntary leave to enter residential treatment. UCSF declined to comment, citing personnel confidentiality. No charges or licensing outcome were described in the source, and the report does not state how the propofol was obtained.

Tennessee Board of Pharmacy revokes pharmacy technician over Goodlettsville diversion

Goodlettsville, Tennessee

The Tennessee Board of Pharmacy disciplined a pharmacy technician in Goodlettsville over controlled-substance diversion, according to the March 2025 disciplinary action report. The order records that the licensee diverted controlled substances from their employer, and the board revoked the licence. A board order is an administrative finding on the board's own investigation, not a criminal conviction, and the report states no quantity.

Tennessee Board of Pharmacy suspends pharmacist over Knoxville diversion

Knoxville, Tennessee

The Tennessee Board of Pharmacy disciplined a pharmacist in Knoxville over controlled-substance diversion, according to the March 2025 disciplinary action report. The order records that the licensee diverted controlled substances from their employer, and the board suspended the licence. A board order is an administrative finding on the board's own investigation, not a criminal conviction, and the report states no quantity.

Tennessee Board of Pharmacy revokes pharmacy technician over Lafayette diversion

Lafayette, Tennessee

The Tennessee Board of Pharmacy disciplined a pharmacy technician in Lafayette over controlled-substance diversion, according to the March 2025 disciplinary action report. The order records that the licensee diverted controlled substances from their employer, and the board revoked the licence. A board order is an administrative finding on the board's own investigation, not a criminal conviction, and the report states no quantity.

Tennessee Board of Pharmacy revokes pharmacy technician over Memphis diversion

Memphis, Tennessee

The Tennessee Board of Pharmacy disciplined a pharmacy technician in Memphis over controlled-substance diversion, according to the March 2025 disciplinary action report. The order records that the licensee diverted controlled substances from their employer, and the board revoked the licence. A board order is an administrative finding on the board's own investigation, not a criminal conviction, and the report states no quantity.

Registered nurse admitted obtaining and consuming oxycodone without a prescription and had controlled-substance administration and documentation errors involving two patients; voluntarily surrendered license

A registered nurse admitted obtaining and consuming oxycodone without a prescription and subsequently signed a Board order for 24 months of monitored practice probation. The employer later reported controlled-substance administration and documentation errors involving two patients, and the nurse could not account for what medications were administered or why documentation was made. The nurse also admitted administering medication without a provider order and later admitted obtaining and consuming two oxycodone pills. The nurse voluntarily surrendered the registered nurse license, which the Board accepted.

Nursing home nurse accused of stealing Tramadol and oxycodone/acetaminophen from residents

Myrtle Beach, SC

A nurse at Angel Oak Nursing and Rehabilitation Center in Myrtle Beach was accused of stealing pain medication from residents in October 2024. State officials alleged the nurse took Tramadol from two patients for personal use, and warrants stated oxycodone/acetaminophen was also taken from a patient. The nurse was charged with two counts of exploitation of a vulnerable adult and two counts of theft of a controlled substance, and was booked into the Horry County jail in March 2025 before being released on bond.

ICU Nurse Arrested for Stealing 17 Fentanyl IV Bags at Brandon Hospital

Brandon, Florida

A 55-year-old ICU nurse at Brandon Hospital was arrested after a Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office investigation found she stole 17 fentanyl IV bags and refilled the tampered bags with an unknown substance before returning them to circulation. She later pleaded guilty to federal counts of tampering with a consumer product and acquiring a controlled substance by misrepresentation.

Pharmacy technician diverted controlled substance from pharmacy (agreed board order)

A pharmacy technician was subject to a voluntary revocation by an agreed board order. The order lists diversion of a controlled substance from a pharmacy. The order also states the licensee developed an incapacity preventing practice as a pharmacy technician or pharmacy technician trainee.

Pharmacy technician diverted controlled substance from pharmacy (default board order)

A pharmacy technician was subject to revocation by a default board order. The order lists diversion of a controlled substance from a pharmacy. The order also states the licensee developed an incapacity preventing practice as a pharmacy technician or pharmacy technician trainee.

Pharmacy technician took controlled substances from pharmacy (default board order)

A pharmacy technician was subject to revocation by a default board order. The order states the licensee took controlled substances from the pharmacy. The order also states the licensee developed an incapacity preventing practice as a pharmacy technician or pharmacy technician trainee.

Birmingham-area nursing home nurse diverted hydrocodone tablets; pleaded guilty to theft

Birmingham, AL

A nurse employed at a Birmingham-area nursing home, responsible for distributing medication to residents, pleaded guilty to theft of property in the second degree. In July 2024, another nurse discovered hydrocodone tablets missing. An investigation found discrepancies involving over 100 hydrocodone tablets over approximately two months. The nurse received a 15-month suspended sentence.

Nevada advanced practice nurse placed on probation for drug diversion and regulatory violations

The Nevada State Board of Nursing entered an Agreement for Probation with an advanced practice registered nurse during its reporting period of December 5, 2024 through February 3, 2025. The cited grounds were unprofessional conduct, diverting supplies, equipment or drugs for personal or unauthorized use, violation of state or federal nursing law or regulation, and departure from customary standards of practice. The published list does not describe the drug, setting or method of detection.

Nevada advanced practice nurse placed on probation for drug diversion and improper delegation

An advanced practice registered nurse entered an Agreement for Probation with the Nevada State Board of Nursing during the period of December 5, 2024 through February 3, 2025. The Board cited unprofessional conduct, delegating licensed or certified functions to unqualified persons, diverting supplies, equipment or drugs for personal or unauthorized use, and departure from customary standards of practice. No details on the drug, setting or detection are given in the published list.

Nevada registered nurse reprimanded and ordered to continuing education for drug diversion

A registered nurse entered an Agreement for Reprimand and Continuing Education with the Nevada State Board of Nursing during the reporting period of December 5, 2024 through February 3, 2025. The Board cited unprofessional conduct, diverting supplies, equipment or drugs for personal or unauthorized use, and departure from customary standards of practice. The published list contains no information about the drug, the workplace or how the conduct was detected.

Nevada advanced practice nurse placed on probation for drug diversion and falsified records

The Nevada State Board of Nursing entered an Agreement for Probation with an advanced practice registered nurse during its December 5, 2024 through February 3, 2025 reporting period. The grounds included unprofessional conduct, diverting supplies, equipment or drugs for personal or unauthorized use, inaccurate recording or falsifying records, violation of state or federal nursing law or regulation, and departure from customary standards of practice. The published list does not describe the drug, setting or how the conduct was identified.

Elkin pharmacy ordered to pay $500,000 penalty and enjoined from filling red-flag opioid prescriptions

A federal court entered a consent decree requiring an Elkin pharmacy to pay a $500,000 penalty and enjoining the pharmacy and its pharmacists from dispensing controlled substances without steps to guard against abuse or diversion. The government's complaint alleged the defendants filled opioid prescriptions while disregarding red flags such as dangerous drug combinations, high-dose long-term opioids, apparent doctor or pharmacy shopping, and prescriptions from a prescriber the state medical board had barred from prescribing controlled substances. The claims remain allegations only, and there has been no determination of liability.

Michigan Pharmacist Surrenders License Over Grand Blanc Drug Diversion

Grand Blanc, Michigan

A Michigan pharmacist in Grand Blanc voluntarily surrendered a license after the state licensing bureau's disciplinary action report cited drug diversion, incompetence, and lack of good moral character as the basis for action.

Michigan Pharmacy Technician Fined and Probated Over Taylor Drug Diversion

Taylor, Michigan

A Michigan pharmacy technician in Taylor was fined and placed on probation upon reinstatement, with the license suspended, after the state licensing bureau's disciplinary action report cited drug diversion, incompetence, and lack of good moral character as the basis for action.

Registered nurse removed propofol from workplace for personal use

A registered nurse was accused of removing narcotic medication from her place of employment for personal use. Pharmacy audit records showed that multiple bottles of propofol were prematurely replaced and several bottles were unaccounted for. The nurse acknowledged removing medication from the facility for personal use to address sleeping issues and admitted the allegations; the license was placed on probation.

Registered nurse alleged to have diverted IV Dilaudid from a worksite an automated dispensing cabinet by logging it out and pocketing it

A registered nurse was alleged to have logged out IV Dilaudid but not administered or wasted it within an hour, placed logged-out IV Dilaudid in a pocket, and documented administering IV Dilaudid when it was not administered. The nurse neither admitted nor denied the allegations. The Board placed the nurse's RN license on probation for 24 months within 36 months, with monitoring and education conditions.

Utah health system paid $1 million to resolve clinic drug diversion allegations

The U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Utah announced that Intermountain Healthcare agreed to pay $1 million to resolve allegations that lax controls let a former employee divert controlled substances for personal use. The government contended that from September 2007 through March 2015 a former medical assistant used a physician's DEA registration number to issue prescriptions to herself and two family members, which the clinic pharmacy filled. The settlement is not an admission of liability, and the health system implemented a corrective action plan.

Orlando pharmacist sentenced to more than 24 years for dispensing oxycodone on fraudulent and pill-mill prescriptions

A licensed Orlando pharmacist was found guilty by a federal jury in March 2016 of conspiring to distribute and dispense oxycodone outside the usual course of professional practice and without a legitimate medical purpose. Evidence presented at trial showed the pharmacy dispensed more than 500,000 oxycodone pills during the conspiracy and collected over $1.3 million from illegal sales, accepting fraudulent prescriptions and prescriptions from pill-mill doctors from patients who traveled long distances in groups. The pharmacist was sentenced to 24 years and 4 months in federal prison.

Former hospital nurse in Douglas charged with stealing and diluting hydromorphone and meperidine

Douglas, WY

A former registered nurse at Memorial Hospital of Converse County in Douglas, Wyoming, pleaded not guilty in federal court to four counts alleging tampering with consumer products and acquiring Schedule II controlled substances. The indictment alleged the nurse removed hydromorphone (Dilaudid) and meperidine (Demerol) from vials or containers and replaced the drugs with saline solution, including alleged tampering with 58 vials of hydromorphone and one container of meperidine. The hospital placed the nurse on administrative leave and the Wyoming State Board of Nursing suspended the license; a hospital spokesman said the former nurse admitted to stealing hydromorphone and had been cooperative. The case came to light when pharmacy staff found irregularities in access to hydromorphone through the hospital's automated medication dispensing system.

Palos Park physician's medical and controlled substance licenses temporarily suspended over prescribing

The Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation reported in its October 2017 enforcement report that a Palos Park physician's medical license and controlled substance license were temporarily suspended. The stated grounds included alleged inappropriate controlled substance prescribing to patients of his private practice, failure to comply with a Department subpoena and falsification of his 2017 renewal application. A temporary suspension is an interim measure, not a final finding.

Schaumburg psychiatrist temporarily suspended over boundary violations and controlled substance prescribing

The Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation's October 2017 enforcement report lists a Schaumburg physician whose medical license and controlled substance license were temporarily suspended. The Department cited alleged boundary violations with an underage patient of his psychiatric practice and alleged inappropriate controlled substance prescribing to patients of his private practice. A temporary suspension is an interim measure and not a final finding.

Perryville pharmacy owner sentenced to 10 years for selling opioids off pharmacy shelves and forging prescriptions

The managing pharmacist and co-owner of a Perryville, Arkansas pharmacy pleaded guilty in October 2016 to conspiracy to dispense hydrocodone without an effective prescription, health care fraud and structuring cash deposits. A pharmacy audit found more than 49,000 oxycodone and more than 72,000 hydrocodone pills missing; the pharmacist sold pills from the shelves after hours, forged prescriptions to cover the shortages and filled fraudulent prescriptions from customers. In September 2017 a federal judge imposed the statutory maximum of 120 months and an $850,000 monetary judgment, and the pharmacy's DEA registration had been permanently revoked in January 2015.

Three former Trinity Hospital hospice nurses accused of stealing drugs and endangering patients

Minot, ND

Three former nurses for Trinity Hospital's Home Health and Hospice program were accused of stealing drugs prescribed for hospice patients between December 2012 and September 2014. Two of the nurses were also charged with endangering a patient by diluting medication or giving morphine instead of prescribed hydromorphine. Those two were reported to the North Dakota Board of Nursing in 2014 and voluntarily surrendered their licenses after admitting to the board's allegations. The third nurse was arrested and charged with theft of property, and police were seeking the other two.

Little Rock VA hospital employee pleads guilty in conspiracy to steal and distribute opioids

Three employees of the Veterans Affairs hospital in Little Rock were indicted in February 2017 on federal charges of conspiring to steal and distribute prescription medication, including opioids. One of the three, a former technician, pleaded guilty in federal court in late September 2017.

Nevada grocery-pharmacy technician accused of diverting hydrocodone, amphetamine and oxycodone tablets from patient bottles

The Nevada State Board of Pharmacy filed a Notice of Intended Action and Accusation in August 2017 against a registered pharmaceutical technician who had been terminated from a grocery-chain pharmacy. The accusation alleges that a June 30, 2017 employer drug screen returned positive for several substances, and that during a follow-up interview the technician acknowledged a drug problem and diverting hydrocodone, amphetamine and oxycodone products by removing two to three tablets from patients' bottles during the filling process. These are allegations in a charging document; the document does not record the Board's final decision.

South Dakota medication aide charged with hydrocodone possession in 2017 health care fraud sweep

The South Dakota Attorney General announced in July 2017 that its Medicaid Fraud Control Unit had worked with other law enforcement agencies on two cases involving alleged drug diversion by medication aides in Yankton County and Turner County, as part of a nationwide health care fraud sweep. In one of the cases, a medication aide was charged with one count of possession of a controlled substance, hydrocodone, a class 5 felony. The release lists the charge only and reports no plea or outcome.

South Dakota medication aide charged with ingesting a substance to become intoxicated in 2017 health care fraud sweep

As part of a July 2017 nationwide health care fraud sweep, the South Dakota Attorney General's Medicaid Fraud Control Unit worked with other agencies on two cases of alleged drug diversion by medication aides in Yankton County and Turner County. In one of the cases, a medication aide was charged with one count of ingesting a substance other than alcohol to become intoxicated, a class 1 misdemeanor. The release names the charge only and does not identify the substance, the workplace, or any plea or outcome.

Ogden hospital emergency room nurse charged with diverting morphine and dilaudid and tampering with vials, exposing patients to hepatitis C

Ogden, UT

A former registered nurse was federally indicted in July 2017 on eight counts of tampering with a consumer product and eight counts of fraudulently obtaining a controlled substance. Prosecutors allege the nurse diverted morphine and the narcotic dilaudid, injected herself with the drugs, and then administered those drugs to others, and that seven patients were infected with a hepatitis C strain the nurse carries; health officials estimated as many as 7,200 patients may have been exposed at two hospitals. Charging records state the nurse surrendered a nursing license in November 2015, and state licensing records state the nurse admitted to taking drugs from an employer while working at both hospitals.

Physician allegedly took back patients' prescribed controlled substances for personal use and falsified records to justify prescribing

Moriarty, NM

A New Mexico physician's medical license was summarily suspended by the state medical board based on allegations that he resumed unlawful personal use of opioid drugs, evaded required drug screenings, diverted controlled substances he had prescribed to patients back from those patients for his own use, and falsified medical records to justify the prescribing. Because DEA registration requires state authority to dispense controlled substances, the DEA revoked his registration and denied any pending applications; the underlying board allegations had not yet been adjudicated at a hearing.

Physician accused of taking back prescribed opioids from patients for personal use and falsifying records

Moriarty, NM

A state medical board alleged that a physician resumed personal use of opioid drugs, prescribed large amounts of controlled substances to patients without adequate medical justification, and diverted controlled substances he had prescribed back from patients for his own use. The board also alleged he falsified medical records to justify the prescribing. These allegations were contested by the physician and had not been adjudicated; DEA instead revoked his registration because his state medical license was suspended, which independently barred him from handling controlled substances in New Mexico.

Massachusetts Paramedic Pleads Guilty to Tampering with Ambulance Fentanyl

Rowley, Massachusetts

Joseph V. Amello, a paramedic for a Massachusetts ambulance company, stole more than 650 5-milliliter vials of fentanyl from ambulance stock between November 2014 and August 2015 for his own use. Beginning around July 1, 2015, he also removed fentanyl from vials intended for ambulance patients and replaced it with saline, putting patients at risk of receiving no pain relief during emergencies. Amello pleaded guilty on June 22, 2017, to acquiring a controlled substance by deception, fraud, and forgery, and to tampering with a consumer product, and was sentenced in November 2017 to 30 months in federal prison and three years of supervised release.

Registered nurse accused of diverting hydromorphone at Memorial Hospital of Converse County by replacing it with saline

Douglas, WY

A registered nurse at Memorial Hospital of Converse County was placed on administrative leave and had their nursing license summarily suspended after hospital pharmacy staff discovered irregularities in access to Dilaudid/hydromorphone in the automated medication dispensing system. According to hospital officials, the nurse allegedly drew hydromorphone from vials and refilled them with saline, and also tampered with containers of Demerol and fentanyl. A hospital representative said the nurse admitted to stealing hydromorphone; investigations by state boards and local authorities were underway and no criminal charges had been filed at that point.

Wayne hospital pharmacy technician indicted for stealing fentanyl from operating room dispensers

A former pharmacy technician at a Wayne, New Jersey hospital was indicted on charges of theft and drug tampering. Authorities allege he removed fentanyl from automated dispensing cabinets in operating rooms, refilled the vials with a colorless solution, and then returned the vials to the hospital pharmacy claiming they were defective. He is no longer employed at the hospital and reportedly surrendered his pharmacy credential after the charges were filed; the charges are allegations that have not been proven in court.

Metro Jackson Hospital Nurse Charged With Embezzling Opioids

A registered nurse at a hospital in the Jackson, Mississippi metro area was arrested and charged with embezzlement after a joint investigation by the Mississippi Bureau of Narcotics' pharmaceutical diversion unit and the DEA found he had allegedly diverted the Schedule II opioids Dilaudid and morphine. He surrendered his nursing license as a result of the charge. Investigators described the arrest as part of a broader state crackdown on pharmaceutical diversion by licensed professionals.

Scottsdale Surgery Center Nurse Surrenders License After Diverting Fentanyl and Dilaudid

Scottsdale, AZ

Danielle Lynn Langham, a registered nurse at a Scottsdale, Arizona surgery center, tampered with vials of fentanyl and hydromorphone (Dilaudid) between August 2015 and May 2016, diverting the narcotics for her own use and refilling the vials with sterile saline to avoid detection. She surrendered her Arizona nursing license on May 2, 2017. The Arizona Attorney General's Office later obtained a state grand jury indictment charging Langham with 23 drug-diversion related offenses, announced in June 2018.

Alaska registered nurse reprimanded for diverting narcotics from employer for personal use

The Alaska Board of Nursing ordered a public reprimand by consent agreement against a registered nurse for unprofessional conduct. The conduct involved the intentional misappropriation of various narcotics from her employer for personal use, in violation of AS 08.68.270(3)(7) and 12 AAC 44.770(8)(9)(22).

Registered nurse reprimanded for misappropriating narcotics from employer for personal use

The Alaska Board of Nursing ordered a public reprimand for a registered nurse's unprofessional conduct relating to the intentional misappropriation of various narcotics from the nurse's employer for personal use. The action was taken by consent agreement.

Hospital nurse accused of embezzling Dilaudid and morphine for diversion

Jackson, MS

A registered nurse who worked at a metro-area hospital was arrested and accused by the Mississippi Bureau of Narcotics of embezzling the Schedule II opioids Dilaudid and morphine. The nurse surrendered their nursing license following the arrest, and additional charges were said to be possible.

California respiratory care practitioner's license revoked after nursing board discipline for possessing controlled substances and false hospital records

The Respiratory Care Board of California revoked a respiratory care practitioner's license effective March 25, 2017, through a default decision and order. The action was based on discipline previously imposed by the California Board of Registered Nursing for obtaining or possessing a controlled substance without a prescription, using a controlled substance in a manner dangerous to self or others, and making false or grossly incorrect entries in a hospital record. The board summary does not identify the drug or the facility.

California respiratory care practitioner surrendered license after being found with four fentanyl syringes not needed for work

The Respiratory Care Board of California accepted a stipulated surrender of a respiratory care practitioner's license, effective March 23, 2017. The board's disciplinary summary states the practitioner committed acts of fraud, dishonesty or corruption by being in possession of four syringes of fentanyl that were not needed or used in his work, and notes a prior board disciplinary action. A stipulated surrender resolves the case without a contested hearing.

Wyoming pharmacy technician-in-training surrendered permit over controlled-substance diversion

A Wyoming pharmacy technician-in-training voluntarily surrendered her permit after being found to have diverted controlled substances, according to the Wyoming State Board of Pharmacy's disciplinary actions listed in its March 2017 newsletter. The board's published summary does not name the pharmacy, specify the drug involved, or describe how the diversion was detected.

Hudson Valley nurse surrendered licenses after admitting unordered medication withdrawals she could not account for

A nurse from Washingtonville, New York, who held both practical and registered nurse licenses admitted to withdrawing medications for patient administration when no physician's order existed, on more than one occasion, and failing to account for what became of those medications through administration, wastage or otherwise. The Board of Regents granted her application to surrender both licenses in an action announced in March 2017. The summary does not identify the drugs involved or the workplace.

VA Hospital Pharmacy Employees Charged with Stealing and Selling Opioids

Little Rock, Arkansas

Three employees of the VA John L. McClellan Memorial Veterans Hospital in Little Rock, Arkansas, were charged in a federal indictment unsealed February 8, 2017, with conspiring to steal prescription medications, including opioids, and distribute them. A pharmacy technician used his VA access to a medical supplier's web portal to order and divert roughly 4,000 oxycodone pills, 3,300 hydrocodone pills, 308 ounces of promethazine with codeine syrup, and thousands of Viagra and Cialis pills at a cost to the VA of about $77,700, with a street value exceeding $160,000, falsifying payment invoices to avoid detection. Investigators determined he distributed a portion of the drugs to another pharmacy technician, who in turn passed some to a pharmacy technician trainee; all three were charged with conspiracy to steal and distribute the medications.

Minnesota pharmacist diverted hydrocodone, zolpidem and tramadol for years and altered records; license suspended indefinitely

A Minnesota pharmacist began diverting hydrocodone/acetaminophen tablets from pharmacies where he practiced in mid-2012, less than a year after completing residential treatment for alcohol addiction, and later added zolpidem. When hydrocodone moved to Schedule II in late 2014 he switched to diverting tramadol, and by summer 2016 he was consuming up to 15 zolpidem and 25 tramadol tablets a day. He admitted using the drugs while on duty and altering pharmacy records to conceal the diversion, and the Board of Pharmacy suspended his license indefinitely.

MedStar Ambulance Paramedic Supervisor Charged with Tampering with Fentanyl and Morphine

O'Fallon, Illinois

Jason Laut, a paramedic supervisor for MedStar Ambulance Inc. in the Metro East St. Louis area, was charged in a 37-count federal indictment returned January 18, 2017, alleging he falsified documents and records between January 2013 and May 2015 to conceal his theft of fentanyl and morphine from ambulance supplies. Evidence showed Laut tampered with at least 85 fentanyl vials by puncturing the tamper-resistant packaging with a needle, withdrawing the drug, and replacing it with water or saline. He was later convicted by a jury on all 38 counts, including wire fraud, false statements, identity theft, and tampering with a consumer product, and was sentenced on August 21, 2018, to 111 months in federal prison.

Pharmaceutical distributor pays record $150 million penalty over unreported suspicious controlled-substance orders

One of the nation's largest pharmaceutical distributors agreed to pay a record $150 million civil penalty for alleged violations of the Controlled Substances Act, announced by the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of New Jersey and DEA. The government alleged the distributor failed to design and implement an effective system to detect and report suspicious orders of controlled substances, despite having agreed to a $13.25 million penalty and compliance program for similar allegations in 2008. The nationwide settlement requires staged suspensions of controlled-substance sales from distribution centers in four states, enhanced compliance obligations for five years and an independent monitor. The resolution is a civil settlement of alleged violations.

Traveling nurse surrendered license after admitting to stealing fentanyl from Massachusetts hospital

Newburyport, MA

A traveling nurse surrendered a license in 2017 after a disciplinary affidavit alleged the nurse stole fentanyl, morphine and hydromorphone from Anna Jaques Hospital in Newburyport, Mass. The affidavit alleged about 40 vials of 100mcg fentanyl were missing, and the nurse later admitted to the Massachusetts Board of Registration in Nursing to stealing 27 doses of fentanyl for patients who had already been discharged.

Carlsbad Pharmacy Technician Pleads Guilty to Stealing Oxycodone

Carlsbad, New Mexico

Amber Kay Otero, a pharmacy technician at Southwest Pharmacy in Carlsbad, New Mexico, was investigated after DEA received a report of theft or loss of controlled substances from the pharmacy, and admitted to intentionally taking oxycodone pills from a bottle at the pharmacy for her own consumption. The criminal complaint alleged she had stolen approximately 20,344 oxycodone tablets of various strengths while employed there from May 2012 through April 2015. She pleaded guilty on December 20, 2016, to the misdemeanor offense of unlawfully possessing a controlled substance, prosecuted as part of New Mexico's HOPE Initiative targeting opioid-related harm.

New Mexico pharmacy technician pleaded guilty after oxycodone theft report from Carlsbad pharmacy

A former pharmacy technician at a Carlsbad, New Mexico pharmacy pleaded guilty in federal court in December 2016 to the misdemeanor offense of unlawfully possessing a controlled substance. The investigation began after the DEA received a report of theft or loss of controlled substances from the pharmacy, and the criminal complaint alleged the technician stole approximately 20,344 oxycodone tablets of various strengths. In the plea, the defendant admitted to having worked as a pharmacy technician at the pharmacy from May 2012 through April 2015. The case was prosecuted under New Mexico's HOPE Initiative.

Casper physician suspended over alleged excessive painkiller prescriptions and oxycodone conspiracy

Casper, WY

The Wyoming Board of Medicine summarily suspended a Casper physician's license after reviewing allegations of excessive painkiller prescribing to multiple patients, including high amounts of oxycodone, methadone, and fentanyl. The board found the physician prescribed controlled substances to a patient with whom he was in a relationship and stated he may have conspired to acquire scheduled drugs by deception for use by someone other than a patient. The physician was arrested and charged with one count of conspiracy to distribute oxycodone.

Illinois nursing home nurse diverted hydrocodone by falsely recording resident requests

A nurse at a long-term care facility in Belleville, Illinois was convicted of unlawful possession of a controlled substance after facility staff reported suspected hydrocodone diversion to state police. Investigators found the nurse had falsely documented residents' requests for their as-needed hydrocodone when no such requests were made, and diverted the doses for personal use. The nurse was sentenced to two years of felony probation and 30 hours of community service. The announcement does not give the sentencing date.

Illinois emergency room nurse diverted hydromorphone from Pekin hospital

An emergency room nurse at a hospital in Pekin, Illinois was convicted of unlawful possession of a controlled substance after a state police investigation. Investigators reported the nurse obtained hydromorphone while on duty and diverted it for personal use. The case was referred to the Attorney General's Medicaid Fraud Bureau and resulted in a sentence of two years of felony probation and 30 hours of community service. The announcement does not give the sentencing date.

New Jersey hospital nurse reprimanded after hydromorphone ampules found tampered with

A registered nurse was terminated from a New Jersey community medical center in or around November 2015 for suspected diversion of hydromorphone after pharmacy staff found two single-dose ampules had been tampered with. According to the consent order, the nurse told employer investigators she had accidentally discarded two doses, split a third ampule between two patients, and refilled the empty ampule with saline. The Board of Nursing found the conduct was professional misconduct and issued a reprimand; the order was entered without admissions, and the nurse had voluntarily enrolled in the Board's monitoring program with negative drug screens.

DC hospital administrative assistant indicted over forged prescriptions for 600 oxycodone pills

A former administrative assistant at a Washington, DC university hospital was indicted in federal court in October 2016 on eight counts of distributing oxycodone and eight counts of obtaining a controlled substance by fraud. Prosecutors alleged that between April and June 2016 the employee used a blank prescription pad belonging to a nurse-practitioner to write fraudulent prescriptions that yielded about 600 oxycodone pills. The employee had been arrested in August 2016 and pleaded not guilty in DC Superior Court, where the case was to be dismissed in favor of the federal prosecution. An indictment is an accusation only.

Mississippi registered nurse's license revoked over medication misappropriation and unauthorized drug possession grounds

The Mississippi Board of Nursing's October 2016 disciplinary summary lists a registered nurse whose license was revoked. The cited grounds were the statutory provision covering dependence on habit-forming drugs or misappropriation of any medication, and unprofessional conduct in possessing, obtaining, furnishing or administering drugs to any person, including self, except as legally directed. The summary does not name a drug or workplace and does not say whether the revocation followed a hearing or an agreed order.

Mississippi registered nurse's license revoked over unauthorized drug possession and misappropriation grounds

The Mississippi Board of Nursing's October 2016 disciplinary summary lists a registered nurse whose license was revoked with recommendations. The cited grounds were unprofessional conduct in possessing, obtaining, furnishing or administering drugs to any person, including self, except as legally directed, and misappropriation of drugs, supplies or equipment. The summary does not identify the drug, the workplace, or the content of the recommendations.

Mississippi registered nurse's license revoked over unauthorized drug handling and falsified records grounds

The Mississippi Board of Nursing's October 2016 disciplinary summary lists a registered nurse whose license was revoked with recommendations. The cited grounds were unprofessional conduct in possessing, obtaining, furnishing or administering drugs to any person, including self, except as legally directed, and falsifying or negligently making incorrect entries or failing to make essential entries on records. The summary does not name a drug or workplace.

New Mexico pharmacy technician charged federally after 20,000-plus oxycodone tablets reported stolen

A former pharmacy technician in Carlsbad was arrested by the DEA on a federal criminal complaint charging theft of medical products. The pharmacy had reported that 20,344 oxycodone tablets of various strengths were missing, and the technician was identified as the suspected thief. The complaint contains allegations only, and the defendant is presumed innocent unless proven guilty.

Tufts Medical Center Pays $100,000 to Settle Controlled Substances Recordkeeping Violations

Boston, Massachusetts

Tufts Medical Center reached a $100,000 civil settlement with the U.S. Attorney's Office to resolve allegations of negligent recordkeeping of its controlled substances, announced during National Prescription Opioid and Heroin Epidemic Awareness Week. The government alleged the hospital failed to maintain accurate inventories and associated records, failed to keep tight control of prescription pads, and failed to make required reports to DEA about thefts or significant losses of controlled substances associated with three former nurses. Tufts cooperated fully with the investigation, agreed to permit DEA to conduct warrantless administrative inspections for three years, and implemented new recordkeeping procedures and security measures including cameras and lockboxes; the settlement was announced September 20, 2016.

Registered nurse admitted diverting controlled dangerous substances while working in an Oregon regional corrections system

Wasco County, Oregon

A registered nurse who had inactivated his New Jersey license and moved to Oregon admitted diverting controlled dangerous substances while working as a nurse in the Northern Oregon Regional Corrections system, and voluntarily surrendered his Oregon nursing license in 2013. He was also convicted in Oregon of Supplying Contraband, Theft and a controlled substance offense. After returning to New Jersey and participating in the Board's Recovery and Monitoring Program, the Board reprimanded him and granted his petition to reactivate his New Jersey registered nurse license, conditioned on continued compliance with the monitoring program.

Northern Maine Medical Center Pays $125,000 to Settle Controlled Substances Act Allegations

Fort Kent, Maine

Northern Maine Medical Center (NMMC), a hospital in Fort Kent, Maine, agreed to pay $125,000 to resolve allegations that it violated the Controlled Substances Act at Forest Hill, its long-term care and skilled rehabilitation location. The government alleged NMMC negligently failed to maintain records documenting the amount, date, and manner of destruction of Schedule II through V controlled substances at Forest Hill and its on-site pharmacy, at times recording only that a drug was "wasted," and that it unlawfully distributed controlled substances at Forest Hill without a separate DEA registration covering that location. NMMC admitted no wrongdoing but cooperated fully with the investigation, and the settlement was announced August 29, 2016.

Cleveland-area diet clinic pill mill indicted for trafficking phentermine and scheduled stimulants

Cleveland, OH

A 227-count indictment charged a clinic owner, a physician, a nurse, and other employees with running a pill mill that illegally sold more than a million doses of weight loss medication through Diet Med Clinics in Mayfield Heights, Fairview Park, and Mentor. The indictment alleged Engaging in a Pattern of Corrupt Activity, Drug Trafficking, and Money Laundering; a physician was accused of using credentials to purchase large quantities of scheduled stimulants while having little or no patient contact as hundreds of thousands of doses were dispensed directly from the clinics. The defendants were scheduled for arraignment September 1.

New Haven man pleaded guilty in fraudulent oxycodone prescription ring that used runners at Connecticut pharmacies

A 32-year-old New Haven man pleaded guilty in federal court in Hartford to one count of conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute oxycodone. Investigators said the organization manufactured fraudulent oxycodone prescriptions, bought legitimate prescriptions from individuals, and used runners to fill them at pharmacies across Connecticut. Between February 2013 and September 2015 the group allegedly stole the identifying information of more than 50 doctors and medical professionals and obtained more than 80,000 units of oxycodone. Eleven people were charged in the investigation.

New Haven oxycodone ring used forged prescriptions and stolen prescriber identities

A New Haven man pleaded guilty in federal court to one count of conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute oxycodone. According to court documents, the organization manufactured fraudulent oxycodone prescriptions, bought legitimate prescriptions from individuals, and used runners to fill them at pharmacies across Connecticut. Investigators said the group stole the identifying information of more than 50 doctors and medical professionals and obtained more than 80,000 oxycodone pills between February 2013 and September 2015.

Advanced practice nurse diverted phentermine through unauthorized prescriptions at Seacrest Village

Little Egg Harbor, NJ

A registered nurse and advanced practice nurse working at Seacrest Village in Little Egg Harbor, New Jersey, was found by the Board of Nursing to have called in multiple phentermine prescriptions under a collaborating physician's name and DEA number without authorization. The nurse admitted writing phentermine prescriptions for facility staff members and herself using the physician's pre-signed prescriptions. The Final Order of Discipline suspended her registered nurse license and advanced practice nurse certificate for a minimum of three years and imposed a $5000 civil penalty.

Emergency room nurse suspended indefinitely for diverting controlled substances from an automated medication administration machine

A registered nurse working in a hospital emergency room repeatedly withdrew controlled substances from an automated medication administration machine and failed to document that they were administered to patients. A drug screen showed three controlled substances in the nurse's system. The Court found the conduct violated laws governing nursing practice and upheld the Georgia Board of Nursing's sanction suspending the nurse until twelve months of continued sobriety, followed by probation.

Hospital emergency room nurse diverted controlled substances from an automated medication administration machine

A registered nurse working in a hospital emergency room repeatedly withdrew controlled substances from an automated medication administration machine and failed to document that the substances were administered to patients. A drug screen indicated three controlled substances in the nurse's system. The court found the conduct violated nursing laws and upheld the Georgia Board of Nursing's proposed sanction of suspension until twelve months of continued sobriety, followed by probation.

Nurse diverted hydromorphone from an automated dispensing cabinet system at place of employment

The Mississippi Board of Nursing revoked a nurse's license after finding the nurse misappropriated drugs, supplies or equipment by diverting hydromorphone from an automated dispensing cabinet system at the nurse's place of employment. The action was taken at hearings held April 5-8, 2016.

Nevada nursing board found a licensed practical nurse withdrew morphine from patient dispensers at a rural hospital without documenting it

Caliente, NV

At a March 24 hearing in Reno, the State Board of Nursing found a licensed practical nurse guilty of withdrawing morphine from the medication dispensers of two patients at a rural hospital in Caliente without documenting what happened to the controlled substance. The board stripped the nurse's license and barred reapplication for five years.

Emory Hospital Pharmacy Technicians Diverted More Than 1 Million Doses of Controlled Substances

Atlanta, GA

Two pharmacy technicians at Emory University Hospital Midtown in Atlanta illegally ordered and received more than one million doses of controlled substances, including alprazolam, hydrocodone, and codeine products, over nearly five years by misusing buyer credentials and bypassing receiving and inventory checks. The scheme, which ran from October 2008 until hospital staff flagged a suspicious purchase in July 2013, was detailed in a Georgia Board of Pharmacy consent order finalized in February 2016. The Board placed the hospital's pharmacy license on probation for three years, fined the hospital $200,000, and barred technicians from approving controlled-substance orders going forward. Both technicians were fired and the matter was referred to the Georgia Drugs and Narcotics Agency and the DEA.

University hospital employees fired for diverting controlled substances including alprazolam and hydrocodone

Two employees at a Georgia university hospital were fired for illegally diverting more than a million doses of controlled substances in a scheme that lasted nearly five years, according to the article. The diverted drugs reportedly included the anti-anxiety medication alprazolam, sold as Xanax, and the pain medications codeine and hydrocodone. A consent order with the Georgia Board of Pharmacy fined the hospital $200,000 and placed its pharmacy license on probation for three years, and the matter was reported to the DEA.

Wayne County LPN Sentenced to Jail for Diverting Oxycodone from Nursing Home Patients

Newark, NY

Ashly Erb, a licensed practical nurse at DeMay Living Center in Newark, New York, falsified medication administration records for fourteen nursing home residents to cover up her theft of 493 narcotic pills, including 94 oxycodone pills taken from a single patient. An investigation by the New York Attorney General's Medicaid Fraud Control Unit and the state Bureau of Narcotics Enforcement led to a June 2015 guilty plea to petit larceny, with a promised conditional discharge contingent on completing treatment and avoiding rearrest. Erb violated those conditions, and on January 6, 2016, a Wayne County judge sentenced her to 99 days in jail.

Worcester Nurse Pleads Guilty to Stealing Oxycodone from Nursing Home Patients

Worcester, Massachusetts

Joanna Dacri, a nurse at a nursing care facility in Worcester, Massachusetts, stole numerous oxycodone tablets prescribed to three patients between February and June 2014. She surreptitiously substituted similar-looking antihistamine and antidepressant tablets in place of the stolen oxycodone so the theft would go undetected. Dacri pleaded guilty on November 5, 2015, to acquiring and obtaining a controlled substance by deception, facing up to four years in prison at sentencing.

Mississippi registered nurse placed on 24-month restricted license over misappropriation ground

The Mississippi Board of Nursing's October 2015 disciplinary summary lists a registered nurse placed on restricted licensure for 24 months. The cited grounds were unprofessional conduct as identified in the Board's rules and misappropriation of drugs, supplies or equipment. The summary does not identify the drug, the workplace, or whether the action followed a hearing or an agreed order.

Mississippi licensed practical nurse's license revoked over misappropriation ground

The Mississippi Board of Nursing's October 2015 disciplinary summary lists a licensed practical nurse whose license was revoked. The cited grounds were unprofessional conduct as identified in the Board's rules and misappropriation of drugs, supplies or equipment. The summary does not name a drug or workplace and does not describe how the matter was detected.

Mississippi registered nurse voluntarily surrendered license amid record falsification and misappropriation grounds

The Mississippi Board of Nursing's October 2015 disciplinary summary records a registered nurse's voluntary surrender of license. The cited grounds were falsifying or failing to make essential entries on records, unprofessional conduct, and misappropriation of drugs, supplies or equipment. A voluntary surrender is not a finding after hearing, and the summary does not identify the drug or the workplace.

Mississippi registered nurse voluntarily surrendered license amid self-administration of drugs ground

The Mississippi Board of Nursing's October 2015 disciplinary summary records a registered nurse's voluntary surrender of license. The cited grounds were unprofessional conduct, deficiencies in essential record entries, and possessing, obtaining, furnishing or administering drugs to herself except as legally directed. A voluntary surrender is not a finding after hearing, and the summary does not name a drug or workplace.

Mississippi registered nurse voluntarily surrendered license amid misappropriation and record-entry grounds

The Mississippi Board of Nursing's October 2015 disciplinary summary records a registered nurse's voluntary surrender of license. The cited grounds were unprofessional conduct, deficiencies in essential record entries, and misappropriation of drugs, supplies or equipment. A voluntary surrender is not a finding after hearing, and the summary does not identify the drug or workplace.

Massachusetts General Hospital Pays $2.3M in Drug Diversion Settlement

Boston, Massachusetts

Massachusetts General Hospital agreed to pay the United States $2.3 million, at the time the largest settlement of its kind, to resolve allegations tied to lax controls that allowed employees to divert controlled substances. DEA opened its investigation in 2013 after MGH disclosed that two nurses had stolen nearly 16,000 pills, mostly oxycodone, from an automated dispensing machine; a subsequent DEA audit found pill-count discrepancies totaling more than 20,000 missing or incomplete medication records. As part of the settlement, MGH adopted a corrective action plan including enhanced diversion monitoring, annual external audits, and fingerprint-based access controls on automated dispensing machines, announced September 28, 2015.

Madison hospital nurse stole fentanyl vials

Madison, WI

A nurse was caught stealing vials of fentanyl from a Madison hospital in 2015. The nurse said she had wanted to get help long before she was caught diverting and had not reported herself to the state. Her nursing license was later fully reinstated.

Southern Tier LPN Pleads Guilty to Diverting Percocet from Nursing Home Patients

Horseheads, NY

Lisa Rumsmoke Clark, a licensed practical nurse at Elcor Nursing and Rehabilitation Center in Horseheads, New York, diverted nearly 200 Percocet pills from eight elderly residents over about a month by completing records that falsely showed the narcotics had been administered. The scheme was uncovered by an investigation from the New York Attorney General's Medicaid Fraud Control Unit and the state Department of Health's Bureau of Narcotics Enforcement. Clark was arraigned in May 2015 on charges including falsifying business records, petit larceny, and criminal possession of a controlled substance, and the Attorney General announced her guilty plea on August 12, 2015.

Dallas pharmacy dispensed controlled substances pursuant to invalid prescriptions; agreed order

Dallas, TX

The Board alleged that a Dallas pharmacy dispensed controlled substances pursuant to invalid prescription orders. The pharmacy accepted an Agreed Board Order, which placed the license on 2-year probation with conditions and imposed a $2500 fine.

Pharmacist-in-charge at a Dallas pharmacy dispensed controlled substances pursuant to invalid prescriptions; agreed order

Dallas, TX

The Board alleged that a pharmacist-in-charge at a Dallas pharmacy dispensed controlled substances pursuant to invalid prescription orders. The licensee accepted an Agreed Board Order, which placed the license on 2-year probation with conditions and imposed a $2500 fine.

Houston pharmacy dispensed controlled substances and dangerous drugs pursuant to invalid prescriptions; agreed order

Houston, TX

The Board alleged that a Houston pharmacy dispensed controlled substances and dangerous drugs pursuant to invalid prescription orders. The pharmacy accepted an Agreed Board Order, which placed the license on 2-year probation with conditions, imposed a $5000 fine, and required policies and procedures to ensure therapeutic dispensing of prescription drugs.

Pharmacist-in-charge and corporate president at a Cleveland pharmacy dispensed controlled substances pursuant to invalid prescriptions; agreed order

Cleveland, TX

The Board alleged that a pharmacist-in-charge and corporate president at Tristar-Cleveland in Cleveland dispensed controlled substances pursuant to invalid prescription orders. The licensee accepted an Agreed Board Order, which placed the license on 3-year probation with conditions, imposed a $7500 fine, and required successful passage of the pharmacy law exam.

Cleveland pharmacy dispensed controlled substances pursuant to invalid prescriptions; agreed order

Cleveland, TX

The Board alleged that Tristar-Cleveland in Cleveland dispensed controlled substances pursuant to invalid prescription orders. The pharmacy accepted an Agreed Board Order, which placed the license on 3-year probation with conditions and imposed a $7500 fine.

Nurse at a medical center in Caliente investigated for unaccounted morphine; license revoked

Caliente, NV

A nurse at a medical center in Caliente, Nevada, was investigated by the state for two 2015 incidents involving unaccounted morphine. The investigation indicated the nurse obtained morphine syringes for patients but failed to document whether the drug was administered, a protocol violation. The Nevada State Board of Nursing revoked the nurse's license for five years for unprofessional conduct in April, after the nurse was notified and summoned but did not appear at a March hearing.

Pharmacy technician diverted over 216,000 Norco tablets from a retail pharmacy while the pharmacist-in-charge failed to detect the theft

West Hills, CA

A pharmacy technician at a retail pharmacy diverted at least 216,630 tablets of Norco over roughly two years by ordering excess quantities on days she worked, hiding and unpacking them away from pharmacist oversight, destroying invoices, and carrying the drugs out in her purse. The pharmacist-in-charge who supervised the pharmacy was found to have failed to maintain accurate inventory records, secure the ordering system, and implement audit procedures that could have prevented or earlier detected the theft. The Board of Pharmacy revoked his license, stayed the revocation, and imposed three years' probation, a decision upheld on judicial review and affirmed by the Court of Appeal.

Minnesota Paramedic Stole Ambulance Morphine, Replaced It with Saline

Minneapolis, Minnesota

Matthew Richard Peterson, a paramedic employed by Allina Health, stole morphine and hydromorphone intended for ambulance patients between August and November 2013, extracting the drugs with a syringe and replacing the liquid with saline to cover his tracks. His tampering left more than 100 patients at greater risk of infection and untreated pain; he only came forward after co-workers discovered the scheme. He pleaded guilty to fraudulently acquiring controlled substances and was sentenced on July 16, 2015, to three years of probation.

Houston pharmacy pharmacist-in-charge dispensed controlled substances pursuant to invalid prescriptions; temporary suspension

Houston, TX

The Board found a continuing threat and entered a temporary suspension order against Rx Max Pharmacy in Houston. The pharmacist-in-charge had dispensed controlled substances pursuant to invalid prescription orders. The license was suspended until further order of the Board.

Pharmacist-in-charge at a Houston pharmacy dispensed controlled substances pursuant to invalid prescriptions; temporary suspension

Houston, TX

The Board found a continuing threat and entered a temporary suspension order against a pharmacist-in-charge. The pharmacist-in-charge had dispensed controlled substances pursuant to invalid prescription orders while at Supreme Rx Pharmacy in Houston. The license was suspended until further order of the Board.

Hospital nurse diverted hydrocodone intended for a patient and falsified records

Parkersburg, WV

A staff nurse at Camden Clark Medical Center in Parkersburg, West Virginia, pleaded guilty to obtaining a controlled substance by misrepresentation, fraud, forgery, deception, and subterfuge. The nurse admitted to taking two 5 mg hydrocodone pills intended for a patient on June 23, 2015, keeping them for personal use, and falsely documenting in the patient file that the medication had been given. The nurse was terminated on June 27, 2015, and faces up to four years in federal prison when sentenced on October 1, 2018.

Twin Falls Pharmacy Technician Sentenced for Selling Stolen Oxycodone

Twin Falls, Idaho

Krista Federer, a pharmacy technician at a Twin Falls, Idaho pharmacy, stole bottles of Schedule II painkillers from pharmacy stock and sold them to another individual outside the normal course of pharmacy practice. She arranged the sales by text message, then left the pill bottles in her car's glove box in the pharmacy parking lot for pickup, including two sales in October 2014 of oxycodone and hydromorphone (Dilaudid) tablets totaling $2,700. She was sentenced on May 19, 2015, to 12 months and one day in prison, three years of supervised release, and a $1,000 fine.

Applicant for reinstatement granted probation after prior controlled substance diversion from pharmacy

An applicant for reinstatement was granted reinstatement with three years probation. The action followed a prior agreed board order that cited diversion of a controlled substance from a pharmacy, with a violation date of May 2015.

Hospital nurse diverted fentanyl from secure medication management stations

Madison, WI

A hospital investigation concluded that a registered nurse diverted 18 vials of fentanyl between May 2 and 3, 2015, by accessing secure medication management stations on a day off, making duplicate withdrawals for the same patient from multiple stations, withdrawing while not scheduled, and withdrawing from units where not providing care. The Board of Nursing adopted a stipulation and suspended the nurse's license for an indefinite period, with the suspension eligible to be stayed after three months under conditions. The nurse neither admitted nor denied the allegations.

California hospital system agreed to $1.55 million civil penalty after hydrocodone losses at Stockton outpatient pharmacy

A large California hospital system agreed to pay $1.55 million to resolve federal claims that its Sacramento-area facilities failed to properly record hundreds of controlled-substance transactions and lacked adequate controls to prevent diversion. The DEA investigation began after the outpatient pharmacy at a Stockton medical center reported losses of more than 20,000 hydrocodone tablets in late 2010 and 2011, and a 2011 audit found shortages of multiple controlled substances. The settlement resolves civil claims and includes a detailed action plan, with part of the payment deferred pending compliance.

New Hampshire practical nurse's license suspended on emergency basis after nursing home diversion allegations

The New Hampshire Board of Nursing suspended a Claremont practical nurse's license on an emergency basis after receiving a complaint from the director of nursing at a county nursing home in Westmoreland and information from a Sullivan County nursing home where she had previously worked. The allegations involved drug diversion activity. The board issued its emergency suspension order and notice of hearing on March 20, 2015, under its authority to act immediately in cases posing imminent danger to public health or safety. The suspension was temporary pending a hearing set for March 27, 2015, on whether misconduct occurred and what sanctions, if any, were warranted.

New Hampshire Practical Nurse Given Emergency Suspension Over Nursing Home Drug Diversion Allegations

Westmoreland, New Hampshire

The New Hampshire Board of Nursing issued an emergency Order of Emergency License Suspension against a practical nurse after a complaint from the Director of Nursing at Cheshire County Nursing Home and information from a prior employer, the Sullivan County Nursing Home, raised allegations of drug diversion activity.

Search warrant at Norwalk, OH physician's office over alleged prescriptions issued while physician absent

Norwalk, OH

State and local law enforcement served a search warrant at a physician's office in Norwalk, OH, as part of an investigation into questionable prescribing. The alleged activity included issuing prescriptions for controlled and non-controlled substances while the physician was absent due to illness, and prescriptions were not dated as of the day issued. No arrests were made, and the case was to be presented to the county prosecutor for requested charges of Illegal Processing of Drug Documents and Trafficking in Drugs.

Louisiana registered nurse voluntarily surrendered license on charges of controlled-substance diversion and a positive for-cause drug screen

At its January 14, 2015 hearings, the Louisiana State Board of Nursing recorded the voluntary surrender of a registered nurse's license for a minimum of two years with stipulations. The charges listed were diversion of a controlled substance and testing positive for THC on a for-cause drug screen. The listing does not identify the controlled substance, the workplace, or how the matter was detected.

Billings man sentenced to 48 months in prison for theft of drugs from a Walgreens pharmacy

A Billings man was sentenced in federal court to 48 months in prison followed by three years of supervised release for drug theft from a Walgreens pharmacy, and was ordered to pay $19,997.75 in restitution to the company. The Drug Enforcement Administration and the Billings Police Department investigated. The available excerpt does not state whether the defendant worked at the pharmacy, which drugs were taken or how the theft was discovered.

Pharmacist Pleads Guilty to Stealing 67,000 Doses of Prescription Narcotics — Minnesota, 2014

Burnsville, Minnesota

Anissa Jeanne Shores, a full-time pharmacist at a retail pharmacy in Burnsville, Minnesota, responsible for maintaining controlled-substance inventory records, began in 2011 falsifying the pharmacy's written and computer receiving logs to understate incoming shipments, then stole the difference for her own use. Over the course of the scheme she diverted an estimated 67,000 dosage units of hydrocodone, oxycodone, carisoprodol, diazepam, and the non-controlled drug tramadol. She was charged by criminal information in October 2014 and pleaded guilty that same month to one count of obtaining a controlled substance by fraud.

Pharmacy technician admitted taking Xanax, Lortab and Luminal without payment from a national chain pharmacy

Baltimore, MD

A pharmacy technician employed at a national chain pharmacy in Baltimore, Maryland was the subject of a State Board of Pharmacy order for summary suspension. The order's investigative findings state that the technician admitted, orally and in writing, to taking Xanax, Lortab and Luminal from the pharmacy without payment, and stated that the count was not accurate and that she stole the drugs. According to the order, the technician was terminated by the pharmacy and was criminally charged in the District Court of Maryland for Baltimore County with theft under $1,000 and theft-scheme under $1,000. The Board summarily suspended the technician's registration to practice as a pharmacy technician in Maryland.

Former Trinity Home Health/Hospice nurses accused of diluting and diverting patients' morphine and hydromorphone

Minot, ND

Two former nurses at Trinity Home Health/Hospice in Minot, North Dakota, were accused of diluting nursing home patients' medications and administering morphine instead of hydromorphone. The text states they were reported to the North Dakota Board of Nursing in 2014 and voluntarily surrendered their nursing licenses after admitting to drug-diversion allegations. An investigation of records for 104 patients found multiple instances of drug diversion, and police charged suspects with Endangering a Vulnerable Adult, Conspiracy, and Theft of Property; warrants were issued.

Pharmacy licensee in Mitchell, SD diverted prescription drugs for personal use and received three-year probation

Mitchell, SD

A pharmacy licensee violated laws and rules governing pharmacy practice and diverted prescription drugs for personal use. The Board ordered a three-year probation effective September 29, 2014, with continued participation in a monitored program for health professionals, quarterly reports, and successful completion of the Multistate Pharmacy Jurisprudence Exam before probation ended.

Physician indicted for trafficking controlled substances prescribed to friends and co-workers

Andover, OH

A physician practicing at St. Joseph’s Andover Medical Center in Andover, Ohio, was alleged to have prescribed controlled substances to friends and co-workers who were not patients and not for a legitimate medical purpose. A grand jury indicted the physician on 26 felony counts of trafficking in drugs. The physician pleaded not guilty and was released on a $10,000 personal recognizance bond.

Delaware state hospital nurse charged with forging medication records to obtain oxycodone

The Delaware Attorney General announced on March 24, 2014 that a former nurse at the Delaware Hospital for the Chronically Ill had been arrested by the Medicaid Fraud Control Unit and charged with obtaining a controlled substance by fraud or forgery, second-degree forgery and falsifying a business record. Investigators alleged that between February 1 and March 18, 2013 the nurse forged the signatures of other nurses on controlled-substance sheets to indicate oxycodone had been given to patients, while allegedly keeping the drug for personal use. The charges were allegations at the time of the announcement, and the nurse was released on unsecured bond after arraignment.

Burlington pharmacy technician accused of taking thousands of hydrocodone, zolpidem and buprenorphine tablets

In 2013 the Vermont State Police Drug Diversion Unit investigated a pharmacy technician at a Burlington retail pharmacy who police said took 4,184 tablets of hydrocodone, zolpidem and Suboxone. According to the police report described in the article, she told investigators she gave the drugs to her husband. The article does not report the outcome of any charges.

Vermont supermarket pharmacist wrote and filled fraudulent hydrocodone prescriptions in two states

State police reported that in 2012 a pharmacist at a supermarket pharmacy wrote and filled 11 fraudulent prescriptions in Vermont and New York, most of them for hydrocodone-acetaminophen. According to the police report described in the article, the pharmacist admitted writing the fake prescriptions and said he had been going through hard times and had flushed the pills he had. The article does not report a court outcome.

Former nurse at Delaware Hospital for the Chronically Ill charged with forging controlled-substance records to divert oxycodone

Smyrna, DE

A former nurse at the Delaware Hospital for the Chronically Ill was arrested on March 21, 2014 and charged with obtaining a controlled substance by fraud or forgery, forgery, and falsifying a business record. The charges alleged that between February 1 and March 18, 2013, the nurse forged other nurses' signatures on Controlled Substances sheets to indicate oxycodone had been given to patients while allegedly keeping the drugs for personal use. The investigation began after a hospital administrator reported illegal obtaining of oxycodone to Smyrna Police and was handled by the Attorney General's Medicaid Fraud Control Unit.

Emergency room nurse sentenced for stealing prescription drugs from patient accounts via a hospital dispensing system

York, ME

A former emergency room nurse pleaded guilty in York County Superior Court on January 31 to ten counts of stealing drugs and three counts of falsifying private records, according to a statement from the Maine Attorney General. From August 2011 to April 2012, the nurse accessed a computerized dispensing system at the hospital using their own name and withdrew drugs in the names of emergency room patients, according to the indictments. On March 26 the nurse was sentenced to two years in prison with all but six months suspended, a second consecutive two-year term all suspended, four years of probation, and was ordered to pay $4,000 in fines and $8,318 in restitution. The nurse's license is under suspension and probation prohibits employment giving access to controlled substances.

UW Hospital nurse charged in morphine and hydromorphone syringe diversion

Madison, WI

A nurse at UW Hospital was investigated after a pharmacy technician noticed red tamper-evidence caps on drug syringes had been tampered with. The nurse admitted to hospital staff that she diverted pain-management drugs for herself since October 2013, and police found she accessed morphine syringes from a secured machine, replaced them with water or an unknown liquid, and diverted 42 morphine and hydromorphone syringes. The nurse was arrested on June 12 and was to be charged with 42 felony counts of diversion of drugs and 42 counts of reckless injury; she was no longer employed by the hospital.

Roseville Pharmacy break-ins lead to indictment for theft of Schedule II and III controlled substances

Roseville, OH

A suspect was indicted on 69 felony counts after an investigation into a series of break-ins at the Roseville Pharmacy in Roseville, Ohio. The suspect is alleged to have been responsible for break-ins from September 2010 through January 2014, during which 6,140 Schedule II and Schedule III controlled substances were reported stolen, with an estimated street value of over $37,000. The investigation was conducted jointly by the Ohio State Board of Pharmacy and the Muskingum County Sheriff's Office.

Traveling Radiologic Technologist Sentenced for Fentanyl Diversion and Multistate Hepatitis C Outbreak — New Hampshire, 2013

Exeter, New Hampshire

David M. Kwiatkowski, a traveling radiologic and cardiac catheterization technologist who worked at hospitals in at least eight states, most recently Exeter Hospital in New Hampshire, stole fentanyl syringes intended for patients undergoing procedures, injected himself, and replaced the drug with saline-filled syringes reused from earlier procedures. Knowing since at least June 2010 that he was infected with hepatitis C, he continued the practice, contaminating the replacement syringes with his infected blood. The scheme, uncovered after a hepatitis C cluster was detected at Exeter Hospital in May 2012, triggered a multistate public-health investigation and led the CDC to recommend testing for more than 12,000 patients; dozens were confirmed infected and at least one death was linked to the outbreak. Kwiatkowski pleaded guilty to federal drug-tampering and obtaining-controlled-substances charges and was sentenced to 39 years in prison.

Delaware nurse suspended two years after unrecorded cabinet withdrawals and muscle-relaxant theft at a state prison

A Delaware nurse first received a Board of Nursing letter of reprimand after sixteen drug withdrawals from a hospital's automated dispensing cabinet went unrecorded over three shifts and a Vicodin pill was pocketed rather than administered or documented. Later, while working at a state correctional institution, the nurse was recorded on video removing cards of Soma from a medication drawer after the prison pharmacy noticed an unusual spike in orders for the drug. The State filed a complaint in September 2012, the Board suspended the license for two years, and the Superior Court affirmed the suspension in November 2013.

Hospital pharmacist convicted of stealing oxycodone and Ambien from Mid Coast Hospital for personal use

Brunswick, ME

A pharmacist working at Mid Coast Hospital in Brunswick was convicted of two counts of Stealing Drugs after pleading guilty on October 17, 2013. The pharmacist diverted Oxycodone and Ambien from the hospital for personal use in 2011 and 2012. The sentence included imprisonment with most suspended, probation, and fines, and the pharmacist’s license was revoked by the Maine Board of Pharmacy in April 2012.

Hospital Settles Adderall Diversion Allegations Involving Medical Residents — New York, 2013

Brooklyn, New York

The United States filed and settled a civil action against New York Methodist Hospital in Brooklyn after alleging that, between May 2008 and July 2010, medical residents employed by the hospital wrote 194 Adderall prescriptions on hospital prescription forms without a legitimate medical purpose, filled them at local pharmacies, and consumed or sold the pills. A related criminal prosecution of one former resident led to a 2012 conviction. Under a consent judgment, the hospital paid a $70,000 civil penalty and agreed to implement a prescription-tracking database and compliance program, without admitting wrongdoing.

Psychiatrist found to have unlawfully possessed controlled substances taken back from patients and kept no required records

Albuquerque, NM

A federal Decision and Order found that a New Mexico psychiatrist unlawfully possessed controlled substances he took back from patients after they had already been dispensed, and that he failed to keep required inventories or receipt/dispensing records for those drugs and for controlled-substance samples in his office. The agency rejected the government's separate claim that he redistributed the drugs to other patients as unproven. Based on the recordkeeping and unlawful-possession findings, and because the state medical board had restricted his authority to prescribe narcotics, DEA suspended his registration for six months and limited his renewed registration to non-narcotic controlled substances.

California retail pharmacy technician accused of conspiring with physician to divert opioids; Board decision issued

The California Board of Pharmacy accused a pharmacy technician at a Glendale retail pharmacy of conspiring with or assisting a physician in the unlawful distribution of controlled substances, including oxycodone, hydrocodone and hydromorphone, between 2004 and 2005. The accusation also alleged the pharmacy dispensed 157 prescriptions from the physician after his medical license was revoked in March 2005. The technician denied key statements attributed to him by federal agents, and the administrative law judge noted the interview was not recorded or independently corroborated. The Board adopted the proposed decision on July 17, 2013, effective August 16, 2013.

Sweetbriar Assisted Living nurse sentenced for hydrocodone theft and falsifying records

Charleston, WV

A former nurse at Sweetbriar Assisted Living in Dunbar, West Virginia, was sentenced in federal court in Charleston to five years of probation for obtaining hydrocodone by fraud. The nurse had pleaded guilty and admitted to stealing hydrocodone intended for patients for personal use and falsifying records to cover up the theft. The case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration and the United States Department of Health and Human Services.

New Hampshire pharmacy technician's registration suspended after admitted hydrocodone theft and resale

The New Hampshire Board of Pharmacy issued an emergency suspension order against a pharmacy technician from Hudson following her June 2013 arrest on drug-related charges. According to the board's order, she was terminated from a Londonderry pharmacy after acknowledging she had taken between 100 and 150 hydrocodone tablets on about 10 occasions beginning in late April and had been selling them to friends. Police charged her with possession of a controlled narcotic, possession with intent to distribute, theft from a building and possession of drugs in a motor vehicle. The suspension was temporary pending a board hearing on whether to continue it or impose permanent sanctions.

Licensed practical nurse found to have ingested prescription medications and possessed Adavan at Delaware Hospital for the Chronically Ill

A hearing officer recommendation found that a licensed practical nurse, while working at the Delaware Hospital for the Chronically Ill in 2008, ingested several prescription medications without telling her supervisor. The recommendation also described a March 2010 incident in which the nurse was found with Adavan in her pocket that should have been administered to a patient but was claimed missing, and found a pattern of theft and consumption of controlled substances. The Board suspended the license for five years, ordered monthly random drug screens, and required 12 continuing education hours.

Hospital Nurse Sentenced for Diverting Dilaudid, Causing Patient Infections — Minnesota, 2013

St. Cloud, Minnesota

Blake Daniel Zenner, a registered nurse at a hospital in St. Cloud, Minnesota, accessed hospital lockboxes and used syringes to withdraw hydromorphone (Dilaudid) from patients' IV bags between November 2010 and March 2011, at times reinjecting the bags with saline to mask the missing drug before they were returned for patient use. Approximately 25 hospital patients developed bacterial infections traced to the tampered bags. Zenner pleaded guilty to obtaining a controlled substance by fraud and was sentenced to 24 months in federal prison and ordered to pay $340,000 in restitution.

VA Hospital Pharmacy Technician Sentenced for Stealing Oxycodone and Other Narcotics — Oregon, 2013

Roseburg, Oregon

Denise Richardson, a pharmacy technician with roughly 18 years of experience at the Roseburg VA Medical Center in Oregon, found a way to manipulate the hospital pharmacy's narcotics tracking and dispensing system. From January 2010 to June 2011 she stole more than 6,000 pills of oxycodone, clonazepam, zolpidem, and OxyContin for her own use and to give to friends and family. A VA Office of Inspector General and DEA investigation uncovered the theft, and she was sentenced to 24 months in federal prison and ordered to pay restitution equal to the VA's purchase cost of the stolen drugs.

New Hampshire pharmacy technician surrendered registration after alleged theft of oxycodone tablets

A pharmacy technician at an Exeter retail pharmacy voluntarily surrendered her New Hampshire pharmacy technician registration rather than proceed to a scheduled January 2013 board hearing. Under the surrender agreement she did not admit the allegations, but accepted that the surrender would be treated as a disciplinary action on her record. The Board of Pharmacy had temporarily suspended her registration after receiving information that her employer's loss-prevention investigation had developed evidence of diversion over a six-month period. She had been arrested in late December 2012 on felony narcotics possession and misdemeanor theft charges, which remained pending.

Dentist had patients and staff fill painkiller prescriptions for his own use

While practicing dentistry in Pennsylvania, a dentist had patients and staff fill prescriptions for painkillers intended for his own use, feeding a drug addiction. He pled guilty to 86 counts in 2013, and Pennsylvania's dental board suspended his license for 10 years as a result. Arizona's dental board reportedly took no action against him despite being aware of the conviction.

Pharmacy technician accused of removing pills from a filled Oxycontin prescription and returning it to conceal the theft

Rockville, MD

A pharmacy technician at a retail pharmacy chain in Rockville, Maryland was alleged to have removed pills from a customer's filled Oxycontin prescription and returned the prescription to the staging area, after which the customer reported 198 of 270 pills missing. The technician reportedly admitted to unethical conduct, was suspended, and later resigned. The State Board of Pharmacy summarily suspended the technician's registration pending a show cause hearing.

South Burlington physician pleaded guilty to prescription fraud after writing prescriptions under fictitious names

State police alleged that between 2004 and 2011 a South Burlington physician created fictitious patient names and obtained at least 288 fraudulent prescriptions for herself at area pharmacies. The case was reported by a coworker who became suspicious when a pharmacy called about a prescription for a name the coworker did not recognize. The Attorney General's Office prosecuted, and in 2012 the physician pleaded guilty to one count of prescription fraud and received a four-year deferred sentence with no jail time.

DC hospital medical technician sold patient data and blank prescription forms used for forged oxycodone scripts

A former medical technician at a Washington, DC university hospital pleaded guilty in June 2012 to wrongfully disclosing individually identifiable health information and was sentenced in September 2012. According to the statement of offense, from August 2010 through December 2011 the technician sold the names, addresses, dates of birth and Medicare numbers of about 40 patients, along with blank hospital prescription forms, to another person, receiving about $2,100 in total. That person forged oxycodone prescriptions and gave pharmacies the technician's hospital phone number for verification, and the technician confirmed the prescriptions when pharmacists called. The sentence included three years of probation, with the first six months in a halfway house and the next six in home confinement, plus 100 hours of community service and a $2,100 fine.

Lutz pharmacist sentenced to 17 years for dispensing oxycodone on fraudulent prescriptions and to a DEA confidential source

A Tampa-area pharmacist was found guilty by a federal jury on August 21, 2012, of one count of conspiracy to distribute oxycodone outside the usual course of professional practice and five counts of distributing oxycodone outside the usual course of professional practice. Evidence at trial showed that from at least 2007 the pharmacist dispensed oxycodone to customers presenting fraudulent prescriptions or no prescriptions at all, and beginning in 2011 sold thousands of pills to a confidential source working with the Drug Enforcement Administration. The pharmacist was sentenced to 17 years in federal prison and forfeited a DEA registration, a Florida pharmacy license, $40,000 in cash and two vehicles.

Pharmacy technician admitted diverting Valium, Promethazine/Codeine Syrup, Vicodin, Loratadine, and Soma from Pharmacy A

A pharmacy technician admitted in a letter of surrender to diverting Valium, Promethazine/Codeine Syrup, Vicodin, Loratadine, and Soma from Pharmacy A from the fall of 2010 until the spring of 2011. The technician stated the drugs were obtained for a family member and a friend, not for personal use. The Board had summarily suspended the technician’s registration on January 31, 2012, and the technician permanently surrendered the registration; the Board accepted the surrender as a final order.

Mississippi licensed practical nurse given 12-month restricted license over drug possession and record falsification grounds

The Mississippi Board of Nursing's July 2012 disciplinary summary lists a licensed practical nurse placed on restricted licensure for a minimum of 12 months with drug-related stipulations. The cited grounds were falsifying or negligently making incorrect entries on records and possessing, obtaining, furnishing or administering drugs to any person, including self, except as legally directed. The summary does not name a drug or workplace, and the action may reflect either a hearing decision or an agreed order.

Mississippi registered nurse voluntarily surrendered license amid drug misappropriation ground

The Mississippi Board of Nursing's July 2012 disciplinary summary records a registered nurse's voluntary surrender of license. The cited ground was unprofessional conduct in that the nurse misappropriated drugs, supplies or equipment. A voluntary surrender is not a finding after hearing, and the summary does not identify the drug, the workplace, or how the matter arose.

A pharmacy technician diverted narcotics by taking and selling them, and the pharmacy's controlled-substance records were found inaccurate as a result

A pharmacy's permit application disclosed that one of its pharmacy technicians had taken narcotics and sold them, resulting in the technician's termination and license revocation. A state board order found the pharmacy failed to keep accurate records of hydrocodone and alprazolam receipt and disposal over a multi-year period, and placed the pharmacy on probation and fined it.

Overland Park pharmacy technician stole hydrocodone and lorazepam, falsified inventories; sentenced to federal probation

A 26-year-old pharmacy technician at a retail pharmacy in Overland Park, Kansas, pleaded guilty to a federal felony charge of obtaining prescription drugs by fraud and was sentenced to two years of federal probation. In the plea, the technician admitted stealing more than 500 hydrocodone tablets and about 200 lorazepam tablets between April and October 2011 and falsifying the store's written inventories to conceal the thefts. The Drug Enforcement Administration investigated the case.

Nursing Home Nurse Sentenced for Tampering with a Dementia Patient's Morphine — Kansas, 2012

Topeka, Kansas

Wendy M. Parmenter, a licensed practical nurse who had already pleaded guilty in 2010 to stealing hydrocodone at a different Emporia, Kansas nursing home and been placed on pretrial diversion, went on to work at Rolling Hills Health Center in Topeka. There, in November 2010, she stole morphine prescribed for a 105-year-old dementia patient and added tap water to the bottle to conceal the theft. She pleaded guilty to tampering with a consumer product and drug adulteration, was sentenced to three years in federal prison, and agreed to permanently surrender her nursing license.

Nursing Facility Nurse Sentenced for Tampering with Patients' Morphine — Kansas, 2012

Salina, Kansas

Melanie French Morrison, a charge nurse at Holiday Resort Nursing Facility in Salina, Kansas, who was addicted to pain medication, removed morphine from patients' vials with syringes and replaced it with sodium chloride solution to conceal the theft, then took the morphine home to inject herself. The scheme was discovered in February 2010 when a nursing director found tampered vials and Morrison tested positive for opiates. She had previously been fired from a Wichita hospital in 2009 for taking Percocet without a physician's order. She pleaded guilty to consumer product tampering and drug adulteration and was sentenced to three years in federal prison.

Nurse Sentenced for Diverting Hydromorphone via Drug Cabinet Login Credentials — Minnesota, 2012

Minnesota

Della Rae Thalin, a nurse at a Minnesota hospital, used her unique login credentials to access automated medication dispensing/monitoring cabinets and remove hydromorphone, which she took out of the hospital for her own use over about three weeks in early 2011. She was charged in August 2011 and pleaded guilty in October 2011 to obtaining a controlled substance by fraud. In January 2012, a federal judge sentenced her to three years of probation. The DOJ press release announcing the sentence did not name the specific hospital involved.

Westchester pharmacy technician charged with trafficking oxycodone, hydrocodone and alprazolam after DEA parking-lot arrest

A 27-year-old Westchester County man employed as a pharmacy technician in Mohegan Lake, New York, was arrested on December 19, 2011 and charged by federal criminal complaint with prescription pill trafficking. According to the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Western District of New York, agents arrested him after he attempted to sell a large quantity of prescription medication in a parking lot in Amherst, New York, and seized over 350 oxycodone, hydrocodone and alprazolam tablets. The complaint is an accusation only, and the defendant is presumed innocent unless proven guilty.

Psychiatrist reprimanded for prescribing Ritalin to her spouse without medical justification

Ridgecrest, CA

The Illinois Board of Medicine fined a psychiatrist after she admitted prescribing Ritalin to her spouse without adequate documentation of medical necessity. The Maryland Board of Physicians subsequently issued a reciprocal reprimand based on that finding.

Sisseton pharmacy technician pleaded guilty to health care fraud over hydrocodone theft

A pharmacy technician employed at a tribal health care center in Sisseton, South Dakota, pleaded guilty on November 28, 2011, to one count of health care fraud in U.S. District Court. Prosecutors stated that between July 2008 and May 2009 the technician took approximately 10 hydrocodone pills from the facility. The count carried a maximum penalty of 10 years of imprisonment, and the case was investigated by the HHS Office of Inspector General.

Internal medicine physician summarily suspended over chronic cocaine and opiate use

Baltimore, MD

The Maryland Board of Physicians summarily suspended an internal medicine physician after determining that his chronic and active use of cocaine and opiates posed a substantial likelihood of risk to public health and safety. No facility or additional detail on how the drugs were obtained was given.

Former state developmental center employee sentenced to prison for selling oxycodone in Cumberland County

A Millville man who had worked as a training technician at a state developmental center was sentenced to five years in state prison after pleading guilty to two counts of second-degree distribution of a controlled dangerous substance. He admitted selling 80 oxycodone tablets to an undercover Division of Criminal Justice detective on each of two occasions in February 2011. The Attorney General's release states there is no evidence he obtained the narcotics from his place of employment, and he was terminated after his arrest. As a result of the plea he is permanently barred from public employment in New Jersey.

Four Connecticut pharmacy technicians charged with stealing and selling prescription drugs

The Drug Enforcement Administration and the U.S. Attorney for Connecticut announced charges against four pharmacy technicians accused of stealing and selling prescription drugs. The announcement launched 'Operation Pharm Team,' an initiative aimed at the illicit sale of prescription drugs. The charges are allegations; the extracted release does not describe outcomes.

Psychiatric Hospital Settles Unregistered Methadone Clinic Allegations — Massachusetts, 2011

Georgetown, Massachusetts

Baldpate Hospital, a private psychiatric hospital in Georgetown, Massachusetts, settled civil allegations with the DEA and the U.S. Attorney's Office after the government alleged the hospital operated a clinic dispensing methadone to heroin-addicted patients without registering as a DEA Narcotic Treatment Program. The government also alleged the hospital failed to maintain required records and inventories of the methadone in its possession. Without admitting wrongdoing, the hospital agreed to pay $29,500 to resolve the claims.

Anesthesiologist admitted to repeatedly ingesting illicit substances and evading toxicology screens

Baltimore, MD

The Maryland Board of Physicians suspended an anesthesiologist after he admitted to repeatedly ingesting illicit substances and deliberately evading detection on toxicology screens. The conduct also violated a prior consent order with the Board.

Physician assistant wrote unauthorized prescriptions for controlled dangerous substances for her own personal use

Hagerstown, MD

The Maryland Board of Physicians revoked a physician assistant's license after finding that she wrote unauthorized prescriptions for Controlled Dangerous Substances for her own personal use. The Board also cited substance abuse issues and unprofessional conduct.

Hospital Nurse Sentenced for Siphoning Dilaudid from Patients' IV Bags — Minnesota, 2011

Coon Rapids, Minnesota

Maria Ann Mihalik, a nurse at Mercy Hospital in Coon Rapids, Minnesota, entered the hospital in May 2010 and used a syringe to draw Dilaudid out of patients' IV bags for her own use. She pleaded guilty in March 2011 to one count of obtaining a controlled substance by fraud and was sentenced in June 2011 to three years of probation, including 180 days in a halfway house and 150 hours of community service. The Minnesota nursing board separately barred her from practicing nursing in the state.

Manhattan, Kansas registered nurse pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute oxycodone and obstruction

A registered nurse from Manhattan, Kansas, pleaded guilty in federal court to one count of conspiracy to distribute oxycodone and one count of obstructing justice, according to a June 2011 release from the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Kansas. Two co-defendants in the same case were awaiting sentencing later that summer. The Kansas Bureau of Investigation handled the investigation.

South Dakota tribal health center pharmacy technician sentenced after hydrocodone theft plea

A pharmacy technician at a tribal health care center in Sisseton, South Dakota, was indicted in August 2010 on charges of obtaining controlled substances by fraud and health care fraud, and pleaded guilty to health care fraud in February 2011. According to the U.S. Attorney's Office, between August 2008 and January 2009 the technician took quantities of hydrocodone from the facility while appearing to dispose of or restock drugs from unclaimed prescriptions. The technician was later sentenced in federal court; the release excerpt does not state the sentence terms.

Respiratory care practitioner took controlled dangerous substances from her workplace

Frederick, MD

The Maryland Board of Physicians found that a respiratory care practitioner took controlled dangerous substances from her workplace. She was reprimanded with terms and conditions upon applying for reinstatement.

West Hartford physician settled civil claims over prescriptions not dispensed to named patients

A West Hartford physician entered into a civil settlement with the federal government, agreeing to pay $42,500 to resolve allegations under the Controlled Substances Act. The government alleged that 11 prescriptions for Vyvanse and Subutex were written outside the normal scope of practice because they were not dispensed to the individuals named on them, and that the physician failed to account for all controlled substances purchased and dispensed from the office. The settlement resolves allegations and is not a finding of liability.

Vermont psychiatric-facility nurse accused of diverting narcotics; consent order later contested through state supreme court

An in-patient mental health facility reported to the Vermont Board of Nursing that a nurse employed there had improperly taken narcotic drugs into his possession, and the State obtained a summary suspension of his license. A consent order reached in February 2011 and approved in April 2011 continued the suspension while expressly stating it was not an admission of liability. The nurse later asked the Board to vacate the order, and the Board did so, but an appellate officer reversed that decision and the Vermont Supreme Court in 2014 held the appeal was properly brought and reinstated the reversal.

Nursing Home Nurse Sentenced for Diluting Hospice Patients' Morphine with Tap Water — Washington, 2011

Snohomish, Washington

Jolene Larsen, a licensed practical nurse and unit supervisor at Merry Haven Care Center, a nursing home providing hospice care in Snohomish, Washington, removed morphine sulfate from prescription vials over several months and replaced it with tap water so she could consume the diverted drug herself. At least one diluted dose reached a patient, whose pain went untreated until additional medication was administered. Larsen pleaded guilty to tampering with a consumer product and was sentenced in U.S. District Court to one year in prison and three years of supervised release.

California hospital lead pharmacy technician diverted over 6,000 controlled-substance tablets from dispensing system

The California Board of Pharmacy accused a lead pharmacy technician at a Loma Linda university medical center of diverting 6,540 tablets of several controlled substances from the hospital pharmacy's electronic vault and dispensing system between April 2007 and August 2008. After a two-day hearing in October 2010, the administrative law judge found the evidence established diversion of more than 6,000 tablets. The Board adopted the proposed decision on February 7, 2011, and revoked the registration outright as necessary for public protection.

Registered nurse signed out extra OxyContin, Percocet, and oxycodone not given to residents and forged a narcotic sheet

A registered nurse signed out extra doses of OxyContin, Percocet, and oxycodone that were not given to residents. The nurse also forged another registered nurse's initials on a narcotic sheet. The board approved a consent agreement with five years of probation, chemical dependency treatment, random drug screening, and employment restrictions.

Former nurse pleads guilty to stealing hydromorphone from Mayo Regional Hospital

Dover-Foxcroft, ME

A former nurse at Mayo Regional Hospital in Dover-Foxcroft, Maine, pleaded guilty Monday to Class C theft for stealing about $8,000 worth of drugs, including hydromorphone, from the hospital between 2008 and 2009. An investigation began when the hospital's pharmacy director noticed he was ordering larger quantities of certain drugs than usual and suspected diversion. The nurse took the drugs but did not administer them to patients, instead injecting them to dull pain from a previous injury, according to her attorney. Sentencing was continued; the district attorney recommended two years in prison with all but 90 days suspended and two years of probation.

New Jersey physician's license revoked for prescribing Percocet without medical justification

The New Jersey State Board of Medical Examiners revoked a physician's license for a minimum of five years and imposed monetary penalties after finding he fraudulently prescribed Percocet and falsified medical records to justify the prescriptions. The findings were based on a joint investigation in which an undercover police officer, posing as an exotic dancer who wanted the drug to relax, was given a Percocet prescription despite denying any pain. The Appellate Division affirmed the Board's decision in October 2010.

Diagnostic radiologist prescribed controlled substances in the names of others for his own use

Annapolis, MD

A physician in a diagnostic radiology practice was found by the Maryland Board of Physicians to have prescribed controlled dangerous substances and other prescription medications in the names of other people, for his own personal use. The Board imposed a stayed suspension and five years of probation subject to terms and conditions.

Surgical Technician Diverts Fentanyl, Triggers Multistate Hepatitis C Outbreak — Colorado, 2010

Denver, Colorado

Kristen Parker, a surgical technician at Rose Medical Center in Denver, stole patients' fentanyl-filled syringes for her own use and replaced them with saline-filled syringes that were then used on patients. Parker was hepatitis C-positive when she was hired, and her diversion scheme infected dozens of patients at Rose Medical Center and the Audubon Surgery Center in Colorado Springs with her strain of the virus. In February 2010, a federal judge sentenced her to 360 months (30 years) in prison — above the term contemplated in her plea agreement — followed by three years of supervised release. She was also ordered to pay more than $500,000 in restitution to the two facilities.

Tulsa hospital pharmacy operator paid civil penalty after employees stole hundreds of thousands of hydrocodone and alprazolam doses

A pharmacy management company agreed in February 2010 to pay a $1 million civil penalty to settle allegations that two Tulsa hospital pharmacies it operated violated the Controlled Substances Act by failing to account for large quantities of controlled substances. A DEA investigation found 399,500 dosage units of hydrocodone and 234,000 dosage units of alprazolam unaccounted for at one pharmacy between October 2005 and June 2007, along with 64 missing controlled-substance invoices, and smaller shortages of hydrocodone, phentermine and alprazolam plus 47 missing invoices at the second pharmacy between April 2007 and July 2008. The company fired two employees; one, who handled invoices and purchasing, pleaded guilty to illegally possessing and distributing hydrocodone. The settlement is a civil resolution, not a finding of liability, and neither hospital was alleged to be involved.

Nurse practitioner self-administered controlled substances taken from office stock

A nurse practitioner admitted that, while working in her own solo practice, she took controlled substances from her office stock and self-administered them without a prescription. The board approved a consent agreement imposing five years of probation, drug rehabilitation counseling, psychiatric or psychological therapy, random testing, and restrictions on controlled-substance access and practice.

Registered nurse had Schedule II drugs removed from an automated dispensing cabinet and unaccounted for

The board database states that an employer provided 184 incidents in which Schedule II drugs were removed from an automated dispensing cabinet by a registered nurse and were unaccounted for. The nurse had been asked to explain allegations of poor nursing practice and possible drug diversion and was diagnosed with situational anxiety disorder and chronic insomnia. A consent agreement imposed three years of probation, a public reprimand, chemical-alcohol assessment, counseling, supervision, and limits on controlled-drug access.

Respiratory care practitioner took controlled substances from a hospital's automated dispensing cabinet dispensing system without authorization

Baltimore, MD

The Maryland Board of Physicians found that a respiratory care practitioner had impairment issues and took controlled dangerous substances (CDS) from a hospital's automated dispensing cabinet system without authorization. The Board issued a reprimand and placed the practitioner on probation for a minimum of one year subject to terms and conditions.

A physician assistant was accused of unauthorized prescribing of Schedule II narcotics to family members

Annapolis, MD

The Maryland Board of Physicians summarily suspended a physician assistant's certification after determining that public health, safety, or welfare required emergency action. The basis included, among other things, an allegation of unauthorized prescribing of Schedule II narcotics to family members.

Radiation therapy technologist forged prescriptions to obtain pain medication

Eldersburg, MD

The Board determined that emergency action was required based on a radiation therapy technologist’s diagnosis of drug dependency for addiction, failure to follow up with outpatient treatment for addiction, continuing to obtain prescription pain medicine, and forgery of prescriptions in both her own name and other names. The Board summarily suspended the technologist’s certificate.

Internist fraudulently wrote prescriptions for controlled substances and misrepresented having them filled

Clinton, MD

The Board found that during 2003-2004 a physician was addicted to or habitually used controlled substances, fraudulently wrote prescriptions, made misrepresentations in having prescriptions filled, and made misrepresentations to the Board during its investigation. The Board suspended the license, immediately stayed the suspension, placed the physician on probation for a minimum of 3 years subject to terms and conditions, and imposed a $10,000 fine.

Illinois hospital bacteremia outbreak linked to nurse drug diversion

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention lists a 2006 outbreak of nine Achromobacter xylosoxidans bloodstream infections at an Illinois hospital among U.S. outbreaks associated with drug diversion by healthcare providers. The outbreak was associated with a nurse at the hospital. The CDC source does not name the drug involved or describe any criminal or licensing outcome.

Physician assistant's certification revoked after guilty plea to illegally distributing oxycodone

Montgomery, PA

A physician assistant's certification was revoked after he pled guilty to two felony counts: distributing Oxycodone not for a legitimate medical purpose, and falsely altering a certificate of discharge from the Army.

Radiation therapy technologist's certification revoked after positive drug test for morphine

Bel Air, MD

A certified radiation therapy technologist violated a disposition agreement with the Maryland board by failing a urine screen that tested positive for morphine. The board found the violation established and revoked the technologist's certification.

Children's Wisconsin nurse diverted morphine and fentanyl for self-administration

A registered nurse at Children's Wisconsin stole morphine and fentanyl intended for pediatric patients and self-administered the drugs starting in 2000, and was caught after four years. The nurse was charged with multiple felonies, convicted of stealing drugs on the job in 2004 and 2005, spent four months in jail, and had her nursing license suspended indefinitely. The license was later fully reinstated and the nurse received a pardon.

Physician wrote prescriptions in patients' names and diverted the controlled substance for personal use

Kensington, MD

State regulators summarily suspended a physician based on investigatory facts showing the physician wrote prescriptions for controlled dangerous substances (Stadol) for patients and then used part or all of the medication for himself. Investigators also found the physician had asked a number of other physicians to write him personal prescriptions for the same drug. The action was taken as an emergency measure pending further Board proceedings.

Physician pleaded guilty to fraudulently obtaining diazepam

Brownsville, TX

A physician pleaded guilty to unlawfully possessing the controlled substance diazepam, which was obtained by fraud. Because state statute required revocation following this criminal conviction, the medical board revoked the physician's license.

Charlotte pharmacist's license suspended indefinitely for altering prescriptions and unauthorized controlled substance use

Charlotte, NC

The Board reported that a pharmacist in Charlotte altered prescriptions for controlled substances and obtained and consumed controlled substances without authorization. The pharmacist's license was suspended indefinitely.

Durham pharmacist admitted unauthorized Sufentanil use; license suspended 30 days, stayed five years

Durham, NC

A pharmacist in Durham admitted using Sufentanil without authorization. The Board accepted a recommendation to suspend the license for 30 days, stayed for five years with conditions.

Mullins pharmacist's license revoked for consuming controlled substances without authorization

Mullins, SC

The Board reported that a pharmacist in Mullins, South Carolina, consumed controlled substances without authorization. The license was revoked.

Rutland pharmacy technician's registration revoked after alleged theft and consumption of a narcotic cough syrup

The State filed a Request for Summary Suspension dated October 8, 2009 alleging that a pharmacy technician employed in Rutland stole and drank Tussionex, a schedule III narcotic-containing mixture, in May 2009. The technician's registration had lapsed on July 31, 2009, and the Board of Pharmacy found emergency action was needed because she could obtain employment with access to narcotics. Following the hearing, the Board revoked her registration effective as of the hearing date.

Anesthesiologist diverted controlled substances from his workplace for personal use

The Maryland Board of Physicians took reciprocal action based on a finding by the Oregon Medical Board that a physician had substance abuse issues and diverted controlled dangerous substances (CDS) from his workplace for personal use. The Maryland Board reprimanded the physician and suspended his license until it is reactivated by the Oregon Medical Board.

Tucson hospital reached civil settlement with the United States after DEA investigation of missing controlled substances

On March 27, 2009 the United States reached a civil settlement with a Tucson hospital following a DEA audit and investigation that began after several doses of controlled substances were found missing from the hospital in early 2004. Under the settlement, the hospital committed to fund $1,000,000 over five years, beginning in fiscal year 2009/2010, to establish a three-part drug abuse prevention initiative for the Tucson community. The settlement resolved the government's claims and is not a finding of liability.

Delaware nurse used a physician's DEA number to obtain Xanax for herself; licenses later permanently revoked

In late 2008 a Delaware nurse illegally obtained a physician's Drug Enforcement Administration number, impersonated the physician, and ordered Xanax prescriptions in her own name. She was arrested in December 2008 and pled guilty in February 2009 to one count of Obtaining a Controlled Substance by Deception. The Delaware Board of Nursing suspended her licenses in May 2011, finding she had diverted, possessed, obtained and administered prescription drugs to herself without authorization, and permanently revoked them in October 2013 after finding she worked as a nurse for roughly eight months while suspended. A 2015 gubernatorial pardon of the conviction did not restore her eligibility; the Board's 2017 denial of her reapplication was affirmed by the Superior Court in September 2017 and by the Delaware Supreme Court in 2018.

General practice physician accused of self-administering narcotics and writing prescriptions to family and staff without medical records

Bowie, MD

A Maryland general practice physician was summarily suspended after the Board's investigation found evidence of addiction to controlled substances, a narcotics overdose, and a pattern of writing prescriptions to family members and office staff without keeping medical records. Patients were also allegedly permitted to create and retain their own medical records. The action was an emergency summary suspension based on investigative findings, not a final adjudicated finding.

Gaston County general practitioner's license revoked after felony conviction for prescribing controlled substances without a legal medical purpose

A general practitioner in Bessemer City was convicted of a felony in North Carolina state court for prescribing controlled substances without a legal medical purpose. Following the conviction, the North Carolina Medical Board issued a notice of revocation of the physician's medical license on November 20, 2008. The Board's report does not identify the specific drugs involved.

Vermont-licensed nurse charged over diversion of opioids prescribed to a New Hampshire nursing home resident

The State of Vermont filed a Specification of Charges dated January 30, 2008 against a Vermont-licensed nurse, alleging unprofessional conduct for diversion of opioids prescribed to a resident of the New Hampshire nursing center where the nurse was employed. The charges cite statutes and board rules covering failure to comply with practice laws, inability to practice competently by reason of drug use, and habitual intemperance or addiction to habit-forming drugs. The excerpt available does not show how the Board resolved the charges.

Unlicensed resident removed narcotic patches from nursing home patient

Baltimore, MD

The Board permanently revoked eligibility for licensure and stated that any application for licensure, registration, or certification will not be accepted. The action concerned an unlicensed first-year resident in a hospital residency program who posed as a licensed physician, entered a nursing home, and unlawfully removed narcotic-eluding patches from a ventilator-dependent patient. Date of action: July 25, 2007.

Registered nurse diverted a Schedule II controlled substance from the workplace

The board database records that a registered nurse diverted a Schedule II controlled substance from the workplace and had a substance abuse notation. The matter was resolved by an amended memorandum of agreement, and the nurse relocated to Nebraska.

Pennsylvania practical nurse's license revoked for misappropriating drugs

The Pennsylvania State Board of Nursing revoked a practical nursing license and assessed a $2,000 civil penalty in May 2007. The board's published action states findings of unprofessional conduct, misappropriation of drugs, presenting an immediate and clear danger to public health and safety, and criminal convictions. Revocation is a final disciplinary action rather than a temporary measure. The notice does not identify the practice setting or the drugs involved.

Pennsylvania nurse disciplined for misappropriation and non-medical use of a controlled substance

The Pennsylvania State Board of Nursing entered an agreed disciplinary action in May 2007 against a nurse holding both practical and professional licenses. The stated grounds were unprofessional conduct for failing to conform to a quality standard of the profession, misappropriating property from an employer or patient, and using a controlled substance for other than an acceptable medical purpose. The licensee agreed to an indefinite suspension of at least one year, immediately stayed in favor of probation, paid a $1,000 civil penalty, and agreed to complete eight hours of continuing education. Because the suspension was stayed, the licensee remained able to practice under probationary terms.

Nevada pharmacy technician refilled hydrocodone prescriptions for herself; registration revoked

The Nevada State Board of Pharmacy revoked a pharmaceutical technician's registration at its February 22, 2007 meeting. Board staff reported that the technician had been terminated from employment after allegedly authorizing and refilling hydrocodone prescriptions for herself without a physician's authorization. The technician did not appear at the hearing despite receiving notice, and the Board proceeded to revocation.

Nevada hospital pharmacy technician created fictitious nurse account to pull narcotics from dispensing cabinets

A hospital pharmacy technician created a fictitious nurse in the hospital pharmacy computer system and gave that account full access to the hospital's automated dispensing cabinets, according to a Nevada State Board of Pharmacy disciplinary report for a February 22, 2007 Board meeting. The hospital noticed that the fictitious user was logged on whenever the technician was also logged on. The report states the technician pried open cabinet compartments to remove Schedule II and III narcotics for personal use, was arrested and convicted of a gross misdemeanor, and was ordered to pay $7,796.20 in restitution and serve two years probation. The technician did not appear at the Board hearing.

Hospital anesthesiologist diverted controlled dangerous substances from medication management system and falsified patient records

Berlin, MD

A physician admitted to addiction to certain controlled dangerous substances and diverted the drugs from a hospital medication management system, placing false information in patient medical records to do so. The Board concluded that the public health, safety, or welfare imperatively required emergency action based on the diversion, abuse of prescription medications, and providing professional services while under the influence. The Board summarily suspended the physician’s license.

Virginia-licensed pharmacist self-administered diverted phentermine on duty; suspension stayed by consent order

According to a Maryland Board of Pharmacy order, a pharmacist's Virginia license was indefinitely suspended after he diverted phentermine HCl 37.5 mg, a Schedule IV controlled substance, and self-administered it while on duty. In lieu of a formal hearing, he entered a consent order with the Commonwealth of Virginia on or about May 22, 2006, and the Virginia Board stayed the indefinite suspension at that time. The order also recites that he pled guilty to prescription fraud and was placed on supervised probation for one year. The Maryland Board later opened its own investigation after learning of the Virginia suspension.

Kansas practical nurse convicted of obtaining prescription drug by fraud; license reinstated under stayed suspension

A Kansas licensed practical nurse was convicted in January 2006 of a misdemeanor for obtaining a prescription-only drug by fraudulent means and was placed on probation that included a drug treatment program. After the nurse applied in September 2007 to reinstate a lapsed license, the nurse and the Kansas State Board of Nursing entered a consent agreement in which the board's counts included fraud or deceit, inability to practice safely due to drug or alcohol abuse, and diverting drugs, supplies or property of a patient or agency. The agreement reinstated the license subject to a suspension that is stayed while the nurse remains in compliance with its conditions, and it is reportable as discipline on future renewals.

General practice physician summarily suspended after admitting cocaine use in violation of probation

Columbia, MD

A physician in general practice tested positive for cocaine, in violation of a consent order from April 2005. The physician admitted to using cocaine on the occasion that resulted in the positive test. The Board imposed a summary suspension of the physician's license.

Internist's reinstatement denied over past substance abuse and fraud in obtaining controlled dangerous substances

Annapolis, MD

The Board denied reinstatement of an internist's license and will not accept further applications for reinstatement for 5 years. The Board found that the physician failed to meet his burden of demonstrating the requisite qualities for reinstatement in light of the serious and recurrent nature of his past misconduct concerning substance abuse and fraud in obtaining controlled dangerous substances and submitting false statements when he obtained licensure in Maryland. Date of action: September 1, 2005.

Pathologist suspended for narcotic/CDS abuse and illegal prescribing

Owings Mills, MD

The Board concluded that a pathologist was guilty of unprofessional conduct in the practice of medicine, including being addicted to or habitually abusing narcotics or controlled dangerous substances, willfully making or filing a false report in the practice of medicine and when applying for licensure, and prescribing drugs for illegal or illegitimate medical purposes. The Board suspended the license for 5 years with terms and conditions, with probation for 5 years if the suspension is stayed. Date of action: August 24, 2005.

Nursing home nurse took Percocet from a resident's medication supply for personal use

Kennebunk, ME

A nurse at Kennebunk Nursing Center was found guilty by a jury of stealing narcotics from the facility where she worked as a nurse from February through May 2004. Evidence at trial showed she took 72 Percocet pills from a resident's supply of medication under the guise of medicating the resident and instead took the pills for her own use. She was sentenced to 9 months in jail with all but 5 days suspended and two years of probation, during which she must submit to random searches and drug testing.

Psychiatrist summarily suspended for prescribing controlled substances in others' names and picking up prescriptions

College Park, MD

The Board summarily suspended a psychiatrist's license on an emergency basis. The Board concluded that the public health, safety, and welfare required emergency action based on investigative findings that the physician engaged in unprofessional conduct, including inappropriate prescribing practices: prescribing large quantities of CDS in the names of 12 individuals for whom the physician could not provide medical records, and picking up the filled prescriptions himself. Date of action: June 13, 2005.

Physician removed hospital supplies to administer a controlled substance to a friend and falsified test records to conceal it

The Board found the physician guilty of unprofessional conduct and of willfully filing a false record, based on conduct including removing hospital supplies to administer a controlled dangerous substance intravenously to an addicted friend. The physician then had the friend's blood tested and had the results filed under the name of another inpatient to conceal the diversion. The Board revoked the physician's license.

Registered nurse diverted morphine and fentanyl from Children's Hospital of Wisconsin stock or waste

Milwaukee County, Wisconsin

A registered nurse employed at Children's Hospital of Wisconsin was found by the Board of Nursing to have diverted morphine and fentanyl from hospital stock or waste for personal use over four years until June 28, 2004, and to have consumed them at work without a prescription or other authority. The Board found this placed patients at risk but did not find actual harm. The nurse was criminally charged in Milwaukee County Circuit Court with unlawfully obtaining a controlled substance. The license was suspended for six months, then indefinitely, with treatment and monitoring conditions and a restriction on access to controlled substances.

General practice physician summarily suspended over alleged conspiracy to distribute Ecstasy and Phentermine

Baltimore, MD

The Maryland Board of Physicians summarily suspended a general practice physician's license, finding that public health, safety, or welfare imperatively required emergency action. The action was based on the physician's alleged activities involving conspiracy, possession, and intent to distribute Ecstasy and Phentermine, and the illegal manufacture, distribution, storage, and concealment of these controlled dangerous substances.

Family practice physician's license revoked after ingesting morphine in violation of probation

Catonsville, MD

The Maryland Board of Physicians revoked a family practice physician's license after finding he violated his July 2002 consent order and a rehabilitation contract by ingesting morphine. The physician was barred from applying for reinstatement for three years.

Anesthesiologist placed on probation after being sanctioned for abusing fentanyl and Demerol

Los Angeles, CA

A licensed anesthesiologist was sanctioned by the Arizona Medical Board after being found to have abused fentanyl and Demerol, both controlled substances used in anesthesiology practice. The Maryland Board of Physicians imposed reciprocal discipline, placing the physician on five years of probation subject to terms and conditions.

Rochester nurse admitted diverting morphine and hydromorphone through fraudulent dispensing-cabinet entries

A Rochester, New York, nurse holding both registered and practical nurse licenses admitted to diverting morphine and/or Dilaudid for her own use by making fraudulent entries in an automated dispensing cabinet under patient identification numbers. In several instances there was no physician order for the narcotics withdrawn. On November 9, 2001, the Board of Regents accepted a consent order imposing a suspension of at least six months and until terminated as set out in the order, followed by two years of probation upon return to practice and a $500 fine.

Physician assistant self-prescribed narcotic analgesics and benzodiazepines while addicted to opiates

Baltimore, MD

A physician assistant was found by the Maryland Board to have filled prescriptions for himself for narcotic analgesics and benzodiazepines while struggling with opiate dependency. The Board found him guilty of providing professional services while using a controlled substance and of unprofessional conduct in the practice of medicine. He received a three-year suspension, with all but ten months stayed, followed by five years of probation.

Physician assistant applicant found guilty by court-martial of self-prescribing controlled substances and prescribing them for his spouse without authorization

Virginia Beach, VA

A physician assistant applicant was found guilty by a Navy court-martial of self-prescribing controlled dangerous substances and prescribing them for his spouse without authorization. The Maryland board denied his application for physician assistant certification based on this record, along with unrelated findings in the same proceeding.

New York practical nurse surrendered license after admitting diversion of Fioricet for personal use

A licensed practical nurse from Rome, New York, applied to surrender her license after admitting to a charge of diverting the controlled drug Fioricet for her own use. The New York State Board of Regents granted the surrender application on November 5, 1999. The published summary does not describe the workplace or how the diversion came to light.

Psychiatrist in Salisbury, MD, reprimanded for writing controlled dangerous substance prescriptions for himself under others' names

Salisbury, MD

A psychiatrist received a reprimand and four years of terms and conditions. The Board reported that the physician wrote prescriptions for controlled dangerous substances for himself in the names of others and issued undated CDS for patients. The action was dated August 25, 1999.

Family practice physician convicted of illegally distributing stimulants and dispensing controlled substances

Potomac, MD

A family practice physician was convicted in circuit court of fifteen counts of distribution of stimulants and seven counts of unlawful dispensing of a controlled substance. The conviction was affirmed on appeal. Because state statute required revocation following this criminal conviction, the medical board revoked the physician's license.

Registered nurse misappropriated controlled substances at Mountainside Hospital

A consent order suspended a registered nurse's license indefinitely on September 1, 1995. The stated basis included findings that the nurse misappropriated controlled substances for personal use from December 1994 through April 1995 while employed at Mountainside Hospital.

Mooresville pharmacist's license suspended indefinitely for unauthorized consumption of controlled substances

Mooresville, NC

The Board reported that a pharmacist in Mooresville consumed controlled substances without authorization. A previously stayed indefinite suspension was terminated, and the license to practice was suspended indefinitely.

Graham pharmacist's license suspended indefinitely for obtaining and consuming controlled substances without authorization

Graham, NC

The Board reported that a pharmacist in Graham obtained and consumed controlled substances without authorization. The license to practice pharmacy was suspended indefinitely.

Pharmacist at Fairview Pharmacy Consultants obtained and consumed controlled substances without authorization

Fairview, NC

The North Carolina Board of Pharmacy reported that a pharmacist at Fairview Pharmacy Consultants in Fairview obtained and consumed controlled substances without authorization. The pharmacist's license was suspended indefinitely, with the suspension stayed for five years under conditions.

Arkansas hospital nurse's license suspended three years after narcotics cabinet tampering and Demerol concerns

The Arkansas State Board of Nursing charged a registered nurse under the state nursing practice act with being habitually intemperate or addicted to habit-forming drugs and with unprofessional conduct, based on events at a Bentonville hospital and a Eureka Springs hospital in 1992. After a hearing in August 1993 the Board suspended the nurse's license for three years with conditions on reinstatement. The circuit court affirmed, and in April 1995 the Arkansas Supreme Court held the Board's decision was supported by substantial evidence.

Registered nurse misappropriated controlled substances at Montclair Community Hospital

A registered nurse's license was suspended for two years on October 12, 1991. The stated basis was misappropriation of controlled substances during February and March 1991 while employed at Montclair Community Hospital.

University of Utah Medical Center nurse accused of diverting Percocet by substituting Tylenol

A nurse at University of Utah Medical Center was accused in a petition filed with the state Division of Occupational and Professional Licensing of diverting Percocet for her own use. The petition alleged she signed out Percocet prescribed to patients who had been discharged and had not requested it, and on about 10 occasions substituted plain Tylenol or Tylenol and Motrin combinations to women who had requested Percocet while keeping the Percocet. It also alleged she began taking one to three pills a week away from work and later used Percocet at work; she voluntarily entered a drug dependency program. The division charged her with two counts of violating the state's Nurse Practice Act and Controlled Substance Act, and she faced license sanctions.

Vermont hospital nurse admitted diverting patient drugs; civil suit tested confidentiality of board investigative files

A patient sued a hospital, its administrator and a registered nurse, alleging the nurse injected herself with drugs meant for the patient and injected water from the tainted syringes into the patient to conceal it. The Secretary of State, as custodian of Board of Nursing records, produced a stipulation of settlement in which the nurse admitted diverting drugs for personal use while employed by the hospital, but sought to withhold the investigative file. The Vermont Supreme Court in its January 1990 term declined to block the trial court's order compelling production of the remaining records.

Mississippi nurse anesthetist's license revocation over unaccounted Demerol reversed by state supreme court

A 1981 hospital audit found that a substantial quantity of controlled narcotics signed out to a nurse anesthetist could not be accounted for as administered, in inventory, or wasted. The Mississippi Board of Nursing charged 17 counts, dismissed all but five, and found the nurse failed to reasonably account for Demerol, revoking the license. The Mississippi Supreme Court held in October 1984 that a failure to account was not a legally cognizable ground for revocation under the statute charged, reversed the chancery court, and directed that the license be restored.

DC agency nurse's Demerol pull for a patient with an expired order led to two-year suspension, upheld on appeal

A registered nurse working a night shift through a temporary help agency at a Washington, DC hospital in February 1980 signed out 50 mg of Demerol for a patient whose prescription had expired two weeks earlier. The patient never received the drug, and no other nurse witnessed the disposal of the surplus. The nurse testified the drug was wasted, but the Board found the nurse not credible, concluded the Demerol was unlawfully possessed on the pretext of administering it to a patient, and suspended the license for two years. The DC Court of Appeals affirmed the suspension in March 1983, after the nurse had been acquitted of related criminal charges.