Nurse drug diversion cases
402 documented cases, 1983–2026.
Figures are derived from the 931 case records collected on this site, not from any official total. A record counts here when its Role field, or failing that its title, names one of these roles: 100 from the Role field, 302 from the title.
Roles counted: Registered nurse (RN) (91) · Licensed practical / vocational nurse (22) · Nurse practitioner / APRN (15) · Nurse anesthetist (CRNA) (12) · Nurse (role unspecified) (262).
Monetary penalties stated
Median: $5,500
Smallest $500 · largest $4,500,000
Median of 37 amounts in US dollars (civil settlements and penalties, criminal fines, restitution, forfeiture) stated in 35 of 402 records. 367 records state no dollar amount.
Custodial sentences stated
Shortest: 3 months
Longest: 120 months (10 years)
63 prison or jail terms stated in 63 of 402 records. Probation, supervised release, home confinement and suspended terms are not counted.
Drug classes involved
| Drug class | Records |
|---|---|
| Opioids | 285 |
| Other controlled substance | 65 |
| Benzodiazepines | 14 |
| Stimulants | 8 |
| Anesthetics / sedatives | 6 |
| No drug stated | 44 |
A record naming drugs from two classes counts in both.
States with the most records
| State | Records |
|---|---|
| Massachusetts | 22 |
| Iowa | 18 |
| Michigan | 16 |
| Connecticut | 15 |
| Mississippi | 15 |
| Wisconsin | 15 |
| Oregon | 14 |
| New Hampshire | 11 |
52 states and territories in all; every state.
Settings involved
| Setting | Records |
|---|---|
| Hospital / health system | 159 |
| Other / not classified | 150 |
| Long-term care | 25 |
| Ambulatory surgery / OR | 9 |
| Home health / hospice | 6 |
| Fertility / reproductive | 2 |
| Retail pharmacy | 1 |
| No setting stated | 50 |
Other roles
Cases
Newest first · page 11 of 17, 251–275 of 402
- Carterville Nurse Diverted Hydrocodone at Disability Care Center 2021-09-16 · Carterville, Illinois · Other / not classified
- DC nurse license stays suspended after fentanyl and oxycodone relapse 2021-09-01 · Washington, DC · Hospital / health system
- Florida emergency room nurse accused of diverting hydromorphone after syringes found in work bag; probable cause panel dismissed case 2021-09 · Hospital / health system
- South Dakota hospital nurse convicted of tampering with fentanyl vials and replacing contents with saline 2021-08 · Chamberlain, SD · Hospital / health system
- Intermountain Healthcare Nurse Tampered with Hydromorphone Syringes 2021-07-23 · Salt Lake City, Utah · Hospital / health system
- Hospital nurse convicted of diverting hydromorphone from pre-loaded syringes and replacing it with saline 2021-07 · Sandy, UT · Other / not classified
- Massachusetts ER Nurse Tampered with Hydromorphone and Meperidine 2021-06-29 · West Boylston, Massachusetts · Hospital / health system
- Nurse Tampered with Fentanyl Vials at Yale Fertility Clinic 2021-05-25 · Orange, Connecticut · Fertility / reproductive
- Nurse Arrested for Stealing 1,400+ Vials of Fentanyl from Long Island Hospital 2021-05-18 · Manhasset, New York · Hospital / health system
- Lowell Nursing Home Nurse Diverted Hospice Patients' Liquid Morphine 2021-04-09 · Lowell, Massachusetts · Long-term care
- Westfield Nursing Facility Nurse Diluted Hospice Patient's Morphine 2021-03-30 · Westfield, Massachusetts · Other / not classified
- Roswell Park Cancer Center Nurse Tampered with Patients' Hydromorphone 2021-03-10 · Buffalo, New York · Other / not classified
- Registered nurse accused of diverting controlled substances from Wisconsin health care facilities 2021-03 · Waukesha, WI · Other / not classified
- Connecticut fertility clinic nurse replaced fentanyl with saline, leaving patients in pain 2021-03 · Fertility / reproductive
- VA Hospice Nurse Sentenced for Diluting Dying Veterans' Morphine 2021-02-24 · Bedford, Massachusetts · Hospital / health system
- Assisted living facility nurse diverted Vicodin from a resident for personal use 2021-02 · Sturgeon Bay, WI · Other / not classified
- Washington Nurse Charged in Controlled Substance Diversion Case (2021) 2021 · Washington · Other / not classified
- Utah Nurse Sentenced in Opioid Diversion Case (2021) 2021 · Utah · Other / not classified
- Pennsylvania Nurse Charged in Opioid Diversion Case (2021) 2021 · Pennsylvania · Other / not classified
- Louisiana Nurse Charged in Controlled Substance Diversion Case (2021) 2021 · Louisiana · Other / not classified
- Southwest Michigan nurse summarily suspended over alleged fentanyl-for-saline substitution 2020-10-28 · Other / not classified
- Nursing Home Nurse Pleads Guilty to Tampering with Hospice Patient's Oxycodone 2020-10-02 · Dighton, Massachusetts · Other / not classified
- Nurse Sentenced to 5 Years for Tampering with Hospice Patient's Morphine 2020-09-14 · Danvers / Amesbury, Massachusetts · Other / not classified
- Eastern Iowa ICU Nurse Sentenced for Stealing Patient's Fentanyl and Morphine 2020-06-26 · Cedar Rapids, Iowa · Hospital / health system
- ICU Nurse Steals Fentanyl IV Bags at Research Medical Center 2020-06-18 · Kansas City, Missouri · Hospital / health system
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Disclaimer
Case summaries are based on public records (DOJ press releases, court documents, licensing-board orders, news reports). Charges are allegations unless a conviction is noted. Analysis is educational, not legal advice.
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