A psychiatrist with offices in Ronkonkoma and Holbrook has been accused of illegally selling prescriptions for drugs to patients that she allegedly knew were abusing the medication and sharing with others.
Nasreen Kader of Central Islip was charged with 15 counts of criminal sale of a prescription for a controlled substance, a felony. Suffolk County Judge Paul Hensley released the 48-year-old suspect without bail Tuesday.
“A drug dealer is a drug dealer, whether they work on the street or inside a doctor’s office,” Attorney General Eric Schneiderman said.
State prosecutors began investigating her after two Long Island families complained that Kader was over -prescribing highly addictive controlled substances to their family members, authorities said. She is the latest in a string of Long Island doctors busted for similar crimes.
She allegedly offered prescriptions for Xanax and Klonopin—tranquilizers used to treat anxiety disorders—and Ritalin, a stimulant prescribed for Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, to undercover investigators posing as patients who admitted to not medically needing the drugs on 12 occasions between August 2012 and September 2013.
Xanax, Klonopin and Ritalin are among the most frequently abused prescription medications aside from painkillers containing hydrocodone.
Kader surrendered her doctors’ license to the state Department of Health’s Office of Professional Medical Conduct in June. She faces up to 5 ½ years in prison on each count.
