A Tennessee woman pleaded guilty to unlawfully distributing controlled substances and healthcare fraud. According to court documents, Kelly McCallum, 41, of Dyersburg, was an advance practice registered nurse who operated Convenient Care Clinic and held a registration from the DEA, which allowed her to prescribe controlled substances. From January 2017 until early 2021, McCallum had sexual relationships with two patients for whom she was their medical provider. She was aware that another patient fatally overdosed after she prescribed them controlled substances but nevertheless continued to prescribe controlled substances outside the usual course of professional practice and not for a legitimate medical purpose.
McCallum also billed Medicare and Medicaid for examinations and other services that she did not personally render, resulting in Medicare and Medicaid paying her approximately $16,234 for services she did not provide. McCallum pleaded guilty to two counts of unlawful distribution of controlled substances and one count of healthcare fraud. She is scheduled to be sentenced on Oct. 3 and faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison on each controlled substance count, and a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison on the healthcare fraud count. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors. In June 2021, the Tennessee Board of Nursing summarily suspended McCallum’s registered nurse license and advance practice registered nurse certificate and ordered her to cease and desist from practicing in the state of Tennessee.
