South Florida Pain Management Doctor Convicted of 11 Counts of Illegally Dispensing Opioid Drugs

Dr. Jeanne E. Germeil, 55, of Aventura, Florida was convicted by a federal jury, on January 31, 2019, of eleven counts of dispensing controlled substances, opioid pain medications, without a legitimate medical purpose.

U.S. Attorney Ariana Fajardo Orshan for the Southern District of Florida and Special Agent in Charge Adolphus P. Wright of the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), Miami Field Division made the announcement.

“Physicians, such as Dr. Jeanne Germeil, who dispense pain medications without a legitimate medical purpose fuel the opioid epidemic,” stated U.S. Attorney Fajardo Orshan.  “The U.S. Attorney’s Office and our law enforcement partners will continue to prosecute those medical professionals who seek to profit off of a public health crisis.”

“Dr. Germeil’s conviction clearly illustrates the consequences of what could happen when medical professionals misuse their authority and dispense narcotics illegally,” said DEA Special Agent in Charge Adolphus P. Wright.  “The DEA remains committed to working with our law enforcement partners to rid our communities of these rogue medical professionals who have violated the trust of many.”

According to evidence admitted at trial, Dr. Germeil ran Germeil Medical, Inc., a family medicine and pain management clinic, in North Miami Beach, Florida. Beginning in or around March 2016 and continuing through November 2017, Dr. Germeil prescribed controlled opioid pain medication to patients.  The true and intended purpose of the consultations was to improperly issue prescriptions to patients for opioids, such as Hydromorphone, Oxycodone, and Oxycodone-Acetaminophen, in exchange for cash, cash co-pays, and other payments.  Pursuant to Dr. Germeil’s instructions, office staff were required to obtain an MRI from patients to create a façade of legitimacy before an office consult.  After passing the gate-keeping function, Dr. Germeil prescribed opioids at levels consistent with treating end of life, cancer, and terminally ill patients and maintained those prescription levels throughout the duration of the patient visits.

Between February 1, 2016 and September 26, 2017, Dr. Germeil wrote 13,759 prescriptions to patients for 1,458,727 units of Hydromorphone, Oxycodone, and/or Oxycodone-Acetaminophen. Dr. Germeil was not providing a medically meaningful consultation but was in fact acting outside the scope of her professional practice and without legitimate medical purpose.  

Dr. Germeil is scheduled to be sentenced by U.S. District Judge Ursula M. Ungaro on April 9, at 2:00 p.m. in Miami.

U.S. Attorney Fajardo Orshan commended the investigation conducted by the DEA and the Aventura Police Department, City of Miami Police Department, Miami-Dade Police Department, Miami Gardens Police Department, North Miami Beach Department and Florida Department of Health’s Prescription Drug Monitoring Program, E-FORCSE.  This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Andy R. Camacho and Kurt Lunkenheimer of the Southern District of Florida. 

Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at www.flsd.uscourts.gov or at http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov.