What Happened
In June 2021, Guido Navarra, M.D., an internist in Newburyport, Massachusetts, agreed to pay $12,500 to resolve allegations that he violated the civil remedies provisions of the Controlled Substances Act. According to the settlement agreement, on two occasions he prescribed opioid controlled substances outside the course of his professional practice. In one case he kept prescribing after a urine drug screen showed the patient was taking controlled substances he had not prescribed. In another, he kept prescribing for several months after a patient requested an early refill, claiming police had seized the medication, without substantiating it. A later drug test showed illicit drug use.
“Dr. Navarra prescribed opioid controlled substances to patients outside the course of his professional practice”
Related Guidance
- 15 Red Flags of Drug Diversion — Behavioral and transactional indicators of diversion.
- Investigation Playbook — How to investigate suspected diversion inside an organization.