Nurse practitioners sentenced for maintaining E. Tenn. pill mills

Three nurse practitioners connected to East Tennessee’s largest opioid operation were sentenced last week for maintaining pill mills, according to a statement from U.S. Attorney Doug Overbey’s office.

Cynthia Clemons of Knoxville, Courtney Newman of Knoxville and Holli Carmichael Womack of Crossville all had a role in prescribing “massive quantities of opioids from pill mills in Knoxville,” the statement says.

Clemons was sentenced to 42 months in prison after a jury on on Feb. 13 found her guilty of two counts of maintaining drug-involved premises, or “pill mills,” for the purpose of distributing narcotics.

Newman and Carmichael Womack each were convicted of one count of maintaining druginvolved premises. Newman was sentenced to 40 months in prison and Carmichael Womack was sentenced to 30 months in prison.

At the trial, Clemons, Newman and Carmichael Womack were acquitted of several other charges, including charges for writing opioid prescriptions.

The women were indicted after a federal probe connected them with Sylvia Hofstetter, who prosecutors say was the mastermind behind East Tennessee’s largest pill mill operation. Hofstetter was convicted on a slew of charges related to the operation, including racketeering, drug conspiracy and money laundering.

“Opioid abuse destroys lives and it devastates families,” FBI agent Joseph Carrico said in the press release. “The FBI takes our responsibility to investigate those who exploit their medical license at the expense of those suffering from addiction very seriously. We, along with our federal, state, and local partners, will remain vigilant to assure that unscrupulous individuals are brought to justice.”

According to trial evidence, Clemons, Newman and Womack prescribed millions of tablets of oxycodone, oxymorphone and morphine from four East Tennessee clinics.

Prosecutors said these sales generated over $21 million in revenue.

Most of the patients the women prescribed pills to were addicted to opioids, according to evidence presented at trail.

“Our office is determined to seek prison sentences for medical providers who think their licenses will protect them from prosecution,” said Overbey, adding that the women’s sentences “should demonstrate that there will be severe consequences for illegally dispensing addictive narcotics.”