A Pennsylvania nurse practitioner pleaded guilty to four felony charges, including prescribing medications without a collaborating physician and false billing.
Stefanie King, 46, of Ulster, voluntarily surrendered her license as a certified registered nurse practitioner and will pay almost $450,000 in restitution, according to a March 16 news release from the Pennsylvania attorney general.
The investigation found Ms. King falsely billed private and commonwealth insurers for services below acceptable medical treatment standards. She also wrote more than 3,750 prescriptions without meeting the requirements to prescribe under Pennsylvania law.
The law requires nurse practitioners to enter into collaborative agreements with physicians to perform medical diagnoses and prescribe controlled substances. Investigators found Ms. King misled physician collaborators and renewed previous agreements without their knowledge, according to the release.
Ms. King is also accused of entering into two sexual relationships with patients. During the first relationship, she billed a private insurer for the time spent together, and during the second she continued to prescribe controlled substances despite discontinuing medical care once the relationship began, the release said.
She pleaded guilty to one felony count of violating the Controlled Substance Act-Obtained by Subterfuge; one felony count of Medicaid fraud; one felony count of insurance fraud; and one felony count of violating the Controlled Substance Act-Delivery by Practitioner.