Omak’s Mid-Valley Hospital Pays $15K Fine For Improper Opioid Oversight

Mid-Valley Hospital & Clinic in Omak will pay a penalty of $15,000 for violations related to the federal Controlled Substances Act.

The fine stems from a suit brought in Eastern Washington U.S. District Court after a nurse at the small facility compromised its system for opioid management over a period of two years.

Get our free mobile app

U.S. Attorney Vanessa Waldref says Eileen Lombardi took advantage of controlled substance audits that were repeatedly overlooked by management at the hospital's pharmacy to divert a supply of the painkiller Dilaudid for her personal use between 2021 and 2023.

Waldref says Mid-Valley failed to properly review its inventory of controlled substances, which directly contributed Lombardi's thefts and abuse of the system.

Lombardi has since entered into a diversion program with the Washington Department of Health that prohibits her from handling controlled substances for up to five years, while Mid-Valley underwent a review of its policies and procedures related to controlled substances through an outside consultant as part of an agreement with federal prosecutors.