close

Family claims home health aid behind obtaining medicine

2 min read

WAYNESBURG – A home health care worker from Carmichaels is accused of fraudulently obtaining prescription drugs in her patient’s name.

Tonya Lynn Yeager, 31, of 51 Cumberland Village, Carmichaels, is charged with prohibited acts under the Controlled Substance, Drug, Device and Cosmetic act, forgery, pharmacy act/unlawful acts and theft by unlawful taking or disposition.

According to a criminal complaint filed Monday, police were contacted by Carolyn Harker, whose mother, Edith Boone, was Yeager’s patient, regarding the theft of hydrocodone pills. Harker, of 212 Sugar Run Road, Waynesburg, told state police she was contacted by a nurse at her mother’s doctor’s office about filling a prescription for hydrocodone. Harker told police she informed the nurse she believed her mother still had roughly 30 pills left and the prescription was not ready to be filled.

Harker said she checked the medicine cabinet and discovered a prescription of 120 tablets was just filled, and she noted 40 pills were missing from that bottle and the older prescription bottle containing the 30 pills was missing, according to the complaint. The receptionist at the doctor’s office told police someone claiming to be the daughter of Edith Boone called the office Dec. 10 trying to get a hydrocodone prescription filled. The caller then spoke with the office manager, who explained the process for getting the prescription filled. The office manager became suspicious when the receptionist told her a woman came in to pick up the prescription, but it was not Harker.

When police spoke with Yeager Dec. 21, she confirmed having a two-hour appointment with Boone Nov. 21, and picking up the prescription from the doctor’s office. She said she had it filled at McCracken’s Pharmacy in Waynesburg and allegedly admitted signing for it. However, Yeager denied calling the doctor’s office to get the prescription filled.

Police obtained Yeager’s the cellphone records for Nov. 21 and records indicated a call was placed to the doctor’s office and two calls were made to the pharmacy.

Yeager was arraigned on $20,000 unsecured bail. A preliminary hearing is scheduled for 11 a.m. Feb. 11 before Magisterial District Judge Glenn Bates.

CUSTOMER LOGIN

If you have an account and are registered for online access, sign in with your email address and password below.

NEW CUSTOMERS/UNREGISTERED ACCOUNTS

Never been a subscriber and want to subscribe, click the Subscribe button below.

Starting at $3.75/week.

Subscribe Today