What Happened
In May 2021, Ruth Jones, 58, of Bedford, Pennsylvania, a prescribing physician at SKS, Inc., a buprenorphine clinic in Johnstown, was sentenced in federal court to two years of probation and fined $5,500 on her conviction for unlawfully prescribing buprenorphine and health care fraud. During her employment she prescribed buprenorphine outside the course of accepted medical practice and not for a legitimate medical reason. The health care fraud occurred when a patient's insurance paid for the prescription. Under her plea agreement she agreed to forfeit $10,000. The case was investigated by the Western Pennsylvania Opioid Fraud and Abuse Detection Unit.
“Jones prescribed buprenorphine outside the course of accepted medical practice and not for a legitimate medical reason.”
Related Guidance
- 15 Red Flags of Drug Diversion — Behavioral and transactional indicators of diversion.
- Investigation Playbook — How to investigate suspected diversion inside an organization.