Even in rehab facilities advertised as secure, drugs can make their way inside and put vulnerable patients at risk of overdose.
Sometimes those dangers come from within. Prescription fentanyl and associated medications can end up being diverted away from their intended treatment purpose. Staff members and patients can obtain and sell drugs that started out as prescribed medication.
When this type of negligent behavior is allowed in a California drug rehab, the owners can be held fully responsible for overdose deaths.
What Is Drug Diversion in Drug Rehab Facilities?
Illegal drugs can make their way into a rehab clinic when patients bring them in during intake. An unsearched visitor could drop them off. They can arrive in packages sent to patients.
But facilities also have prescription drugs on hand that can also prove a danger to patients. This often happens through illegal activity known as drug diversion.
Drug diversion is when legal, prescription drugs are redirected to be used for illegal purposes.
In a negligent facility, the diversion of prescription drugs can happen in many ways:
- Doctor, nurse, facility pharmacist, or a staff member swiping drugs
- Fake prescriptions
- Medication tampering when staff replaces an opioid medication with another, less-valuable substance
- Patients selling their legal prescription drugs to drug dealers or other patients
- Patients hoarding doses in hiding spots around the facility
Patients can become dealers. Security staff can become dealers. Even medical professionals may resort to selling drugs.
These and other criminal acts can lead to fatal Fentanyl overdoses and overdoses involving prescriptions meant to help patients with a Fentanyl dependence.
The potentially devastating consequences should never be blamed on vulnerable patients. They should never be exposed to such dangers while trying to get better.
The Dangers of Prescription Drug Diversion
Some MOUD prescriptions (medications for opioid use disorder) are opioids themselves. They can help patients through withdrawal and lower cravings, but they are still dangerous.
Methadone can be combined with other drugs to create euphoria. It’s also possible for patients to overdose on Methadone.
Buprenorphine is often administered in dissolving tablets or films, as explained by the CDC. It can be taken in bigger doses for a high or mixed with other drugs.
In negligent drug treatment centers, these prescription drugs can be diverted from their intended use. Staff members can become drug dealers and provide these drugs for profit.
Facilities can be left liable for the negligent supervision of their employees and a failure to secure dispensary rooms and track people entering and their usage.
See: Why fentanyl use patients are at higher risk of overdose if they relapse.
Frequently Asked Questions
How long do I have to file a claim over a drug rehab center injury?
Patients with a case involving standard negligence (a personal injury claim) have two years to file a claim. It’s the same for families who file wrongful death claims. Victims and families filing medical malpractice cases would have a three-year deadline. For more information, you can visit our page explaining the difference between personal injury claims and medical malpractice claims.
Can a drug rehab facility be responsible for hiring staff members with criminal backgrounds?
Yes, facilities can be liable for this type of negligent care towards patients, especially after patients are allowed to overdose. Clinic owners might be liable for negligent hiring and not performing adequate background checks. They can miss a criminal past or a history of past illegal drug use.
What type of support is available for victims and families after an injury at a drug rehab center?
Victims should receive help with their medical bills, their lost paychecks while they miss time at work, and their pain and suffering (including additional emotional trauma). Families who tragically lose a loved one to a drug overdose in a facility can ask for help with funeral expenses and in paying all remaining medical bills. They should be helped in replacing the income the deceased may have supported the family with. Family members may also receive support for the care and guidance they’ve lost forever.
Contact Us if a California Rehab Facility Allowed Drug Dealers to Harm Your Loved One.
Attorney Martin Gasparian offers a free, confidential consultation to families who lost a loved one at a negligent California drug treatment center.
Call us today or fill out a free case review form.