Two nurses on New York's Long Island are being accused of selling fake COVID-19 vaccination cards and entering the false information into the New York State Immunization Information System database, according to The Washington Post.
Julie DeVuono, 49, and Marissa Urraro, 44, allegedly made more than $1.5 million in less than three months, the newspaper reported.
"These individuals allegedly used their positions as licensed healthcare professionals to engage in criminal conduct for their financial benefit," Suffolk County District Attorney Raymond Tierney said in a Jan. 28 news release shared with Becker's. "This fraudulent scheme was uncovered thanks to the hard work of the members of the Suffolk County Police Department DA's squad assigned to my office."
Ms. DeVuono, the owner and operator of Amityville, N.Y.-based Wild Child Pediatric Healthcare, and her employee, Ms. Urraro, allegedly used their positions with the New York State Department of Health to obtain COVID-19 shots, along with COVID-19 vaccination cards and medical syringes, prosecutors said. Thereafter, from November 2021 to January 2022, the pair allegedly forged the vaccination cards, entered the false information into the New York State Immunization Information System database, and charged $220 for adults and $85 for children for each false entry.
Prosecutors said law enforcement found about $900,000 in Ms. DeVuono's home, along with a ledger documenting profits of more than $1.5 million from the alleged scheme.
Ms. DeVuono, a nurse practitioner, and Ms. Urraro, a licensed practical nurse, are each charged with one count of forgery in the second degree. Ms. DeVuono is also charged with offering a false instrument for filing in the first degree.
Ms. DeVuono and Ms. Urraro have pleaded not guilty, the Post reported.