Former Doctor Sentenced to Prison for Illegally Prescribing Oxycodone

 Leonard C Boyle, Acting United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that JENNIFER FARRELL, 38, of Chapel Hill, North Carolina, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Jeffrey A. Meyer in New Haven to 30 days of imprisonment, followed by three years of supervised release, for writing illegal prescriptions for oxycodone while she was a doctor in New Haven.  Judge Meyer also ordered Farrell to perform 600 hours of community service while she is on supervised release.

According to court documents and statements made in court, Farrell was a medical resident at Yale New Haven Health (“YNHH”) in its Emergency Department from July 2017 until June 2019.  From March 2018 to March 2019, Farrell wrote more than 50 prescriptions for oxycodone for non-legitimate medical purposes outside the scope of her professional practice in the name of at least five individuals.  Farrell did not see any of the other individuals for any medical purpose at any YNHH facility during the entire period of her residency.  In total, she wrote illegal prescriptions for nearly 4,000 oxycodone tablets during that approximately one-year period.

Farrell was arrested on July 31, 2019.  On March 4, 2021, she pleaded guilty to distribution of controlled substances outside the scope of her professional practice and without a legitimate medical purpose.

This investigation was conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Drug Enforcement Administration, Diversion Control Group.  The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Heather Cherry.