San Fernando Valley Pharmacist Convicted In Black Market Drug Scheme

LOS ANGELES, CA — A Calabasas pharmacist is facing 15 years in prison for her role in a healthcare fraud and black-market prescription drug diversion conspiracy, according to the U.S. Department of Justice.

Irina Sadovsky, 53, the former owner and pharmacist-in-charge of two San Fernando Valley pharmacies was convicted Friday in downtown Los Angeles of conspiracy to commit health care fraud and conspiracy to engage in the unlicensed wholesale distribution of prescription drugs

Sadovsky owned and operated Five Star Pharmacy and Ultimate Pharmacy in Van Nuys.

According to the justice department, "Sadovsky submitted claims to Medicaid of California (Medi-Cal) and Medicare for prescription drugs that were never dispensed to beneficiaries but rather were provided to co-conspirators to sell on the black market."

Her co-conspirators created fraudulent prescriptions, either by writing the prescriptions themselves or by paying kickbacks to marketers with access to patients and prescribers, according to court documents. Sadovsky recommended the combinations of prescription drugs to be written, checked the eligibility of the patients for reimbursement, and fraudulently submitted claims to Medi-Cal and Medicare.

Sadovsky is scheduled to be sentenced in Los Angeles federal court on Feb. 3 when a federal judge will announce her sentence.

City News Service contributed to this report.