New York Nurse Charged with Stealing Pain Medication and Violating HIPAA
A former nurse in a New York cancer center has been charged by a U.S. attorney with illegally obtaining controlled substances by fraud, tampering, and violation of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA). The charges carry a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.
According to the complaint, the defendant used her position as a nurse to tamper with and steal vials of medication and pills, e.g., hydromorphone, methadone, oxycodone, and lorazepam being used to treat cancer patients. The defendant allegedly removed the vials of medication from the Pyxis machines that automatically dispense medications to the cancer center’s patients. She would then replace the content of the vials with water. In June and July of 2018, there were waterborne infections diagnosed at the cancer center. The complaint states that six patients allegedly became infected as a result of the defendant replacing medications with contaminated water.
Many of the nurse’s thefts took place on floors and/or wings where she was not assigned and did not have patients. The defendant is accused of accessing the Pyxis machines during her working shifts and during times when she was not scheduled to work, and on three occasions when she was on vacation. The defendant is accused of failing to properly administer medication for 81 patients.
The violation of HIPAA is related to the defendant’s searching through the Personal Health Information (PHI) of patients she was not assigned to care for in order to identify persons being given the controlled substances she wanted to steal.
Compliance Perspective
Failure by a facility to prevent staff members from misappropriating controlled substances used to treat patients/residents may be considered provision of substandard quality of care and a HIPAA violation under state and federal regulations.
Discussion Points:
- Review policies and procedures regarding misappropriation of residents’ medications and the HIPAA provisions involved with the unauthorized accessing of residents’ personal health information.
- Train staff on the policies and procedures designed to prevent misappropriation of controlled substances intended for residents, and the application of HIPAA regulations for unauthorized access of residents’ PHI.
- Periodically audit to ensure the protocols designed to prevent misappropriation of residents’ medications and unauthorized access of residents’ PHI are being followed.
