Main Line Doc Settles Illegal Prescription Allegations With Feds

DEVON, PA — A Devon-based physician agreed to pay a fine after allegations that he gave himself prescription medications, a synthetic opioid and a sleeping medication, illegally.

United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero said Daniel Rubino, M.D., will pay $8,000 to resolve allegations that he violated the Controlled Substances Act by dispensing and distributing Schedule III and Schedule IV controlled substances without an effective prescription issued for a legitimate medical purpose.

The United States’ investigation involved Rubino’s self-prescribing practices at his medical office, Daniel T. Rubino, P.C., located at 176 E. Conestoga Road in Devon.

Between March 2020 and December 2022, DEA investigators discovered that Rubino was self-prescribing Schedule III and IV medications while he treated patients at his medical office, specifically buprenorphine, a synthetic opioid, and eszopiclone, a sleep aid medication.

During this time period, the DEA identified that Rubino had written approximately 44 prescriptions to himself, and that he had done so without the oversight of a prescribing physician and with no initial assessments, reevaluations, or routine monthly visits with a full assessment of his chronic pain and urinalysis.

Accordingly, Rubino repeatedly dispensed or distributed Schedule III and IV controlled substances to himself without an effective prescription.

As part of the settlement, Rubino has entered into a two-year Memorandum of Agreement with the Drug Enforcement Administration, which includes additional responsibilities regarding the handling of controlled substances. The agreement imposes compliance obligations significantly more stringent than those in the applicable laws and regulations.

Congress enacted the CSA to deter the illegal importation, manufacture, distribution, possession, and improper use of controlled substances, including prescription medications, and requires individuals and entities registered with the DEA to maintain complete and accurate records of all controlled substances and security systems so that controlled substances are no lost, stolen, or inappropriately dispensed.

The government’s pursuit of this matter illustrates its emphasis on combating diversion of controlled substances. The dispensing and distributing requirements applicable to DEA registrants, including physicians, are the tools by which the DEA deters drug diversion.

The investigation was conducted by the DEA’s Philadelphia Field Division, and the investigation and settlement were handled by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Deborah W. Frey and Anthony Scicchitano.