Pain clinic doctor sentenced, allegedly distributed 2 million opioid pills

FLORIDA – A Florida pain clinic doctor has been sentenced for unlawful drug distribution, money laundering, and filing a false tax return.

U.S. District Judge Charlene E. Honeywell sentenced Qing McGaha to seven years and eight months in federal prison last week. The court also ordered McGaha to forfeit an office condominium, which is traceable to the proceeds of the offense, pay $100,000 in criminal fines, and $119,462.34 in restitution to the Internal Revenue Service.

As part of her sentence, McGaha also forfeited $774,216.12 in cash seized from her residence and $170,512.34 seized from her two bank accounts, which were proceeds of her criminal conduct.

A federal jury found McGaha guilty on June 16, 2023.

According to court documents, McGaha was a Florida-licensed medical doctor who owned and operated MD Care Clinic, a pain management clinic in Hillsborough County. Over a 20-month period, undercover agents with the Drug Enforcement Administration conducted numerous appointments with McGaha.

At each appointment, they received hydrocodone, hydromorphone, or oxycodone, Schedule II controlled substances, not for a legitimate medical purpose in the usual course of professional practice. Between January 2016 and January 2021, McGaha distributed over 2.1 million opioid pills.

According to evidence revealed during the trial, McGaha engaged in multiple monetary transactions over $10,000 in funds criminally derived from the operation of her clinic. She is said to have used these funds to purchase a piece of real property located in Clearwater and deposited them into her bank account.

In 2021, McGaha reportedly filed false and fraudulent tax forms for tax year 2020 that underreported MD Care’s gross revenue by nearly $300,000.

“Medical professionals who put personal profit over the safety and health of their patients by prescribing controlled substances without legitimate medical need violate both their oath to ‘do no harm’ as well as the Controlled Substances Act,” said DEA Miami Field Division Special Agent in Charge Deanne L. Reuter.

“This sentence is a testament to the DEA Miami Field Division’s commitment to working with our law enforcement partners to pursue those medical professionals who violate the public’s trust and put our communities at risk.”

The case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration—Tampa District Office, the Internal Revenue Service—Criminal Investigation, the Lakeland Police Department, the Tampa Police Department, the Largo Police Department, and the Opioid Fraud Abuse and Detection Unit at the United States Attorney’s Office. This case was also part of the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force. Assistant United States Attorneys Greg Pizzo and Suzanne Nebesky prosecuted it.