Conspiracy charges filed against health care professionals

Federal officials may file conspiracy charges when at least two health care professionals agree to engage in an unlawful act. Cornell Law’s website notes that conspiracy requires that two or more individuals act together with the intent to accomplish an agreed-upon goal. If a medical team agrees to provide patients with inappropriate medications, it could establish a conspiracy. Charges may result when at least one individual takes an obvious step to complete the agreement.

Prosecutors need to show the court a conspiracy existed

Officials may allege that at least two health care professionals agreed to distribute medications unlawfully. One of them may have then distributed medications in a manner contrary to the Controlled Substances Act. To convict on conspiracy charges, however, the court needs evidence of a prior arrangement. In some cases, staff members may have had an unwritten policy to prescribe medications without a thorough examination. A prosecutor would generally need to show that at least one of the staff members then completed an unlawful act.

Three Texas health care practitioners charged with conspiracy to distribute controlled substances

As reported by CBS Dallas-Fort Worth, a Tarrant County physician and two staff members faced charges of conspiracy to distribute a controlled substance. The two staff members worked with the physician to prescribe medications. Individuals receiving medications through the office purportedly did not receive medical exams. Several individuals working within the same medical office may face conspiracy charges. The charge may result from an agreement between two or more individuals. They may need to defend against allegations of conspiracy even if they did not perform the alleged wrongful act themselves.