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A Bedford nurse was arrested after an investigation by the Attorney General Medicaid Fraud Control Unity police arrested 37-year-old H. York, on felony charges of obtaining a controlled substance by fraud and failure to make or keep a controlled substance record.
According to investigators York was a nurse at Westview Nursing and Rehabilitation Center. The investigation began after a licensed nurse reported the incident to the Director of Nursing and the Executive Director at the facility who then contacted authorities.
According to investigators, York has been a licensed nurse since September 27, 2005, and worked at Westview.
On July 9, 2020, another nurse noticed apparent discrepancies. According to records, a patient had a prescription for Lortab (Hydrocodone/Acetaminophen 7.5-325 mg), which was for one pill to be given to the resident twice a day. According to records, there were 6 pills at the start of the shift and York had administered two doses to the resident during the day; therefore, there should have been 4 pills remaining in the patient’s supply. However, at shift change, there was no medication left.
The nurse questioned York about the missing medication, York started to make entries on the patient’s record saying she had given the pills to the patient. The nurse noted that there should have been four pills remaining. York pulled the empty pill card out of the trash. York suggested that she had perhaps given the resident a double dose of the pills – but that still wouldn’t have accounted for all of the missing pills. York became upset, confused, and lamented about how busy it was during the day shift, and how a resident had been hitting staff – including her – while she was preparing to administer medications for the residents. York told the nurse that she might have some of her husband’s Lortab in her car, and asked whether she should bring it in and replace the missing pills. The nurse rejected that idea.
York and the nurse then began to look for the missing pills. There were no loose pills in either cart at that time. York asked the nurse to look in the medication room, which she did. When she returned to the front hall cart, York suddenly appeared to find 4 loose pills in the cart; however, while two of the pills were the same strength as the missing pills (7.5-325mg), the other two were a different dose (5-325mg). York taped the two 7.5-325mg pills into the medication card and York and the nurse destroyed the two other pills. York then left the facility, and the nurse contacted the Director of Nursing to report the incident.
On the following day, July 10, 2020, the Director of Nursing initiated an internal investigation.
During an interview, with the Director of Nursing and the Executive Director York again claimed that she had spilled pills when a resident was hitting her. York then stated she messed up and believes she may have errandy given the meds to two patients. York could not explain where the 5-325mg pills came from, other than to say it had been a crazy night. Following the interview, York was suspended and taken by the Assistant Director of Nursing, for a drug screen. Later that day York sent a text message to the Director of Nursing that she was resigning.
On July 21, 2020, the facility received the results of York’s drug screen, which was positive for opioids and benzodiazepines, including Hydrocodone, Clonazepam, and Alprazolam.
On May 18, 2021, York met with state investigators for an audibly recorded interview at the Dubois County Library in Jasper. York initially relayed her story about spilling medications and denied doing anything improper. Upon further questioning, York finally admitted that she had a drug problem, that she was in treatment, and that she had taken the 4 missing pills.
A warrant was then issued for York’s arrest.