Two women from North Jersey have pleaded guilty to helping a local doctor give out thousands of oxycodone pills without any real medical reason.
- Two women conspired with Dr. Lisa Ferraro to distribute over 36,000 oxycodone pills without a real medical reason.
- Ferraro prescribed thousands of pills to fake patients without any medical examination or inquiry.
- The women have pleaded guilty and are waiting for their prison sentences, while Dr. Ferraro faces multiple charges.
Two Women Plead Guilty in Opioid Distribution Scheme
Federal officials reported that 32-year-old Jasmine McGregor and 35-year-old Jhenelle Lewis of Paterson admitted to conspiring with Dr. Lisa Ferraro to illegally prescribe oxycodone pills.
The charges, announced by U.S. Attorney Philip R. Sellinger, revealed that Ferraro, practicing at HVA Medical Group in Paterson, prescribed these powerful painkillers without ever examining the recipients or inquiring about their symptoms.
McGregor and Lewis both confessed to knowingly and intentionally conspiring with Ferraro to distribute controlled substances outside the usual course of professional practice.
The doctor wrote prescriptions for 90 pills of 30mg oxycodone each, which were then split between Ferraro, a recruiter of fake patients, and the fake patients themselves.
One of these so-called patients had been in jail for nearly two years yet received over 5,300 pills without any medical examination.
Thousands of Oxycodone Pills Illegally Prescribed
Between July 2022 and October 2023, Dr. Ferraro wrote prescriptions for approximately 630 20mg oxycodone pills and around 11,410 30mg oxycodone pills in conspiracy with McGregor.
With Lewis, the numbers were similarly staggering, with Ferraro prescribing approximately 9,450 30mg oxycodone pills from January 2019 to September 2023. In total, over 36,000 oxycodone pills were involved in this illegal distribution network.
The recipients of these prescriptions included individuals incarcerated in federal prisons, further highlighting the audacity and reach of this scheme.
Dr. Ferraro, who is in her 60s, allegedly kept a portion of the pills for her own use.
Despite the serious charges, Ferraro’s lawyer, Linda George, declined to comment, and Ferraro’s medical license remains active without any disciplinary complaints pending against her.
Dr. Ferraro’s New Legal Battle & History
This case is not Dr. Ferraro’s first legal trouble. Six years ago, she and two others faced state fraud charges for filing bogus insurance claims.
However, the Passaic County Prosecutor’s Office dismissed those charges due to procedural mishandling.
Despite these issues, Ferraro has maintained her medical practice, which was originally started by her father, and has served the Paterson community for over 30 years.
Federal authorities have scheduled the sentencing for McGregor and Lewis in November and December following their guilty pleas.
Meanwhile, Dr. Ferraro still faces serious charges, including conspiracy to distribute controlled substances, and awaits further legal proceedings.
