Authorities in Tallahassee arrested Lee Barfield, a 48-year-old nurse practitioner at the FSU Health Lifestyle Medicine Clinic, following an investigation into allegations of prescription drug fraud and the systematic falsification of medical records.
The employee informed detectives that Barfield had allegedly promised her a higher-paying position within the university system, complete with improved benefits, as an incentive to facilitate the filling of these prescriptions.
The documentation of these instances suggests that the nurse practitioner relied on her institutional authority to override the typical verification steps that a pharmacy or an insurance provider would require for controlled substances, using her position to validate otherwise illegitimate medical claims.
Most modern clinics rely on electronic health record systems that log every interaction a provider has with a prescription pad.
For the defense, the focus will likely turn to the credibility of the whistleblower and the specific intent behind the records entries.
Lee Barfield, 48, faces ten felony counts involving controlled substance fraud and falsifying medical records at a Tallahassee clinic.