Middlebury APRN Admits to Receiving Kickbacks to Prescribe Pain Medicine

A Middlebury advanced practice registered nurse pleaded guilty to receiving kickbacks in relation to a federal healthcare program.

Investigation revealed that Alfonso worked a a Derby pain and headache treatment center and that she was a heavy prescriber of a drug that is used to treat cancer pain, according to the U.S. Attorney District of Connecticut office. She was responsible for more than $1 million in Medicare claims and was the highest prescriber of the drug in the state.

It was discovered that most of the patients didn’t have cancer and were taking the drug to treat chronic pain. Medicare and most private insurers will not pay for the drug unless the patient has cancer.

The manufacturer of the drug had paid Alfonso as a speaker for more than 70 dinner programs at a rate. In many instances Alfonso and a sales representative from the drug manufacturer were the only ones who attended the dinner. In the majority of instances she didn’t give a presentation about the drug at all.

She was paid $83,000 by the manufacturer between January 2013 and March 2015 and admitted as part of the plea deal that she prescribed the drug due to the influence of being paid.

The charge of receipt of kickbacks in relation to a federal healthcare program carries a maximum term of imprisonment of five years