Local nurse practitioner pleads guilty to prescription fraud

Attorney General Michelle Henry announced to the public that a Bradford County nurse practitioner and local businesswoman who owned a mental health facility in Athens Borough has pleaded guilty to prescribing medications without a collaborating doctor and false billing.

According to a press release issued by the Office of the Attorney General, the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, Stefanie King, 46, of Ulster pleaded guilty to several felony counts and has surrendered her Certified Registered Nurse Practitioner's license. She is also ordered to pay nearly $450,000 in restitution.

The press release added that some of the charged conduct happened while King was engaged in an inappropriate relationship with a patient.

Last year, King was charged by the Pennsylvania Attorney General's Office with multiple felony counts of Medicaid fraud; forgery, tampering with public records; possession of controlled substances; theft by deception and insurance fraud, for her alleged involvement in incidences that took place from November 2016 to March 2020.

King operated the Center for Holistic Integrative Mental Health, LLC, which was located on Main Street in Athens Borough.

"The defendant abused her position of trust by engaging in conduct that served herself and violated a system meant to assist our most vulnerable residents," Henry said. "My office is committed to holding accountable those who put patients at risk and compromise our health care programs."

The investigation found that King falsely billed in excess of $300,000 to private insurers, as well as $100,000 to the Commonwealth, for services below acceptable medical treatment standards, the press release noted.

Additionally, King wrote more than 3,750 prescriptions to patients while not meeting the requirements to prescribe under Pennsylvania law, according to the press release.

King began a sexual relationship with a patient beginning in November 2016 at the Center for Holistic Integrative Mental Health, LLC and billed a private insurer for the time they spent together, the press release explained.

Following this, King entered into a second relationship with a different patient and continued to prescribe controlled substances to them, despite discontinuing medical care after the relationship began.

Nurse practitioners are required to enter into collaborative agreements with Pennsylvania licensed physicians in order to perform medical diagnoses and to prescribe controlled substances, according to Pennsylvania law.

The press release noted that investigators found that King misled past physician collaborators and renewed previous agreements without their knowledge.

King 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.

King has agreed not to practice as a nurse during her sentence and voluntarily surrendered her license to practice as a Certified Registered Nurse Practitioner, according to the press release. In addition, she will pay restitution of $348,760 to Highmark and $100,425 to Community Care Behavioral Health Organization.

The case is being prosecuted by Senior Deputy Attorney General Mark Bellavia and Senior Deputy Attorney General Christopher R. Sherwood and was investigated by Special Agents David Bunchalk and Matthew Yocum.