Former Kentucky nurse sentenced in theft of pain medication
LOUISVILLE, Ky. – A former Kentucky nurse anesthetist is facing over six years in prison after the theft of pain medicine from a Louisville pain treatment center, officials say.
According to the United States Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Kentucky, 41-year-old Matthew Ryan Elkins of Crestwood was sentenced July 20 to six years and five months in prison.
Officials say Elkins was charged with tampering with consumer products, acquiring a controlled substance by misrepresentation, fraud, deceit and subterfuge and burglary involving controlled substances.
According to officials, the court imposed a $15,000 fine and three years of supervised release following his incarceration. Elkins also forfeited his Kentucky nursing licenses, officials say.
On March 21, 2024, Louisville police arrested Elkins, a contract nurse anesthetist at the time for a Louisville pain treatment center, after officials say he was caught by patrol officers as he was burglarizing the pain treatment center and removing medicine intended for patients.
According to officials, patients of the treatment center typically are palliative care patients, patients with histories of cancer, spinal injuries, brain injuries, failed back surgeries and other severe illnesses.
Officials say intrathecal pain pumps were implanted to treat the patients, for whom all other therapies had been ineffective. According to officials, liquid medications in the pumps were refilled periodically using a pre-filled syringe of pain medicine, which included the patient’s name and was filled according to each patient’s needs.
Before filling each patient’s pump, officials say the pre-filled syringe was stored in an office safe.
According to the attorney’s office, Elkins admitted to Louisville officers that he had been “removing narcotics from the office twice a week for at least three months.”
Officials say that after Elkins removed pain medications from the syringes, he would refill them with sodium chloride and place them back in the safe in an attempt to evade detection. According to officials, as a result, patients received “heavily diluted and adulterated medications.”
“Elkins’ actions caused patients to suffer extreme pain, sickness and other withdrawal symptoms,” the attorney’s office stated.
United States Attorney Kyle Bumgarner stated, “Matthew Elkins abused the trust of his patients and this community by stealing essential medications from vulnerable victims, tampering with their medications to avoid detection, and causing them severe injury. Today’s sentence is the result of seamless cooperation between federal, state, and local law enforcement and reaffirms our commitment to seek justice for vulnerable victims.”
There is no parole in the federal system.
