A Colorado Springs nurse practitioner has consented to pay $90,000 to settle allegations surrounding her prescription practices. Monica Preston, N.P., faced accusations of improperly prescribing controlled substances, including opioids, which violate the Controlled Substances Act and the False Claims Act. The announcement was made by the United States Attorney's Office for the District of Colorado.
The government contended that Ms. Preston, while employed at the now-closed Colorado Institute for Pain Management, was found to have written prescriptions that were not only in excessive dosages but also prescribed too frequently and often mixed dangerously with other controlled substances. These practices were reportedly far outside the normally accepted standards of her profession and supposedly not for legitimate medical purposes. In what appears to quickly become a costly lapse in judgment, the United States also alleged that Ms. Preston misrepresented these prescriptions as reasonable and necessary for the Center for Medicare Services.
As part of the settlement, Ms. Preston has agreed not to only pay the damages and civil penalties but has also conceded to permanently surrender her Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) registration. This action means that she will not be allowed to prescribe any controlled substances in the foreseeable future. "Nurse practitioners entrusted with prescribing authority must be careful not to ignore red flags that suggest that the opioids they prescribe are being misused or abused," said Acting U.S. Attorney Matt Kirsch, as per U.S. Department of Justice. "When nurse practitioners do not adhere to well-established prescribing guidelines or falsely represent that improper prescriptions were reasonable and necessary, we will hold them accountable."
According to the U.S. Department of Justice, the DEA expressed their satisfaction with the outcome. DEA Rocky Mountain Field Division Special Agent in Charge Jonathan Pullen stated, "The DEA is proud to relentlessly pursue practitioners not acting in their patients' best interests." Pullen added, "Our investigators – along with other federal partners – worked diligently on this case, and as a result, Ms. Preston will never again be allowed to legally prescribe opioids or other controlled substances." The case also drew attention from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General (HHS OIG), whose Special Agent in Charge Linda T. Hanley pointed out the importance of holding medical practitioners accountable for prescriptions that fall outside of professional practice standards.
