A Hammond resident involved in a $50 million prescription drug scheme that used public employees in New Jersey pleaded guilty Wednesday.
Hayley Taff, CEO of Louisiana-based Central Rexall Drugs, admitted her role in a scheme in which public-sector employees in New Jersey were recruited to get expensive compound, or specialty, prescriptions they didn’t need and hadn’t been prescribed. She pleaded guilty by videoconference before U.S. District Judge Robert B. Kugler.
Wednesday marked the first time the pharmacy or Taff had been identified, though earlier indictments had referred to an unidentified Louisiana-based pharmacy. The 37-year-old Hammond resident took more than $1.5 million from the scam, according to the U.S. attorney’s office. She pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit health care fraud, which carries a maximum 10-year prison sentence. Taff also agreed to forfeit more than $1.5 million.
Taff’s sentencing is scheduled for Dec. 1.
