Florida News Articles
In contrast with California, the state of Florida has been aggressively cracking down on rogue recovery. The Florida State Attorney has established a Sober Living Task Force which seeks to eliminate bad operators. In contrast with California, Florida seems to offer much less "resort-like" residential recovery, and much more "flophouse." Here we track significant articles about Florida's progress:
5/3/21 Three Florida Men Charged in $46 Million Health Care Fraud, Kickback, and Money Laundering Conspiracy
4/23/21 Lindsay Lohan’s father faces patient brokering charges in South Florida
2/26/21 Boca Raton Doctor Max Citrin Jailed on Insurance Fraud Charge
10/31/20 Serenity sober home CEO sentenced to more than 17 years in prison for health care fraud conviction
9/22/20 City reviews the health and safety of recovery houses
7/31/20 Delray Beach addiction treatment doctor arrested in $681M fraud case
7/22/20 Florida man accused of steering urine tests to drug lab
7/2/20 Lake Park sober home operators charged in $2M kickback, money laundering scheme
7/22/20 Florida man accused of steering urine tests to drug lab
6/15/20 Palm Beach Police: Man stole over $20k worth of luxury items from Palm Beach home
5/20/20 Former PBSO deputy sentenced to 5 years for patient brokering, charity fraud
4/27/20 What happens to people in drug treatment, recovery housing?
4/16/20 Reference Lab, Pain Clinic and Two Individuals Agree to Pay $41 Million to Resolve
Allegations of Unnecessary Urine Drug Testing
3/27/20 CEO, CFO, President and Owner of Sober Homes Network “Serenity
Ranch Recovery” Convicted in $38 Million Fraud Scheme After Six-Week Trial
3/2/20 She wanted addiction treatment. She ended up in the relapse capital of America
2/21/20 PBSO: Former deputy stole money from kids of “warriors”
2/20/20 Sex, drugs and medical fraud? Sober home CEO goes to trial
2/14/20 After bad start to 2020 with overdoses, Lake Worth Beach beefs up chronic nuisance ordinance
2/10/20 Head of sober home certification organization urges reporting of abuses
2/6/20 Sober home owners put their horses first, and now three people are dead
1/24/20 First man in Palm Beach County to be charged with homicide for OD death takes plea
1/21/20 Florida ’sober homes’ owners, clinic directors sentenced to prison for healthcare fraud
12/6/19 Treatment center owner gets 10 years in prison, must pay $24 million
11/15/19 Three South Floridians plead guilty to bilking Aetna, others for drug-abuse treatment
11/14/19 Fort Lauderdale drug dealer gets 30 years for fentanyl death
10/21/19 My Years in the Florida Shuffle of Drug Addiction
10/16/19 Gardens-area man facing multiple patient brokering charges
10/14/19 My Years in the Florida Shuffle of Drug Addiction
8/12/19 Mail-order prescriptions brought ring thousands in patient-brokering kickbacks, police say
7/25/19 A closer look at sober Florida’s sober homes - inside their fatal attraction with Wisconsin’s addicts
7/25/19 Aventura man charged with taking $1 million in kickbacks in opioid rehab scheme, cops say
7/9/19 Jacksonville Beach facility owner pleads guilty in $57M laundering scheme
6/26/19 Delray police: Man paid thousands in patient-brokering kickbacks
6/10/19 Female patient found dead at Centerstone in Bradenton
6/8/19 Woman was detoxing at Centerstone when she died. Mother suspects negligence
6/4/19 Missing New York Woman, 20, Found Dead in Florida After Trip for Rehab
5/22/19 Two years, 30 arrests, 12 convictions: A task force’s track record
5/3/19 Florida Legislature Passes Latest Sober Homes Task Force SUD Treatment and Recovery Residence Legislation
4/19/19 Former West Palm Beach Sober Home Operator Owes IRS $6.5M
4/7/19 Boca man, 75, charged with patient brokering
1/14/19 Sober Home Task Force: Kickbacks for North Palm center totaled nearly $250,000
12/15/19 State Attorney: 2 Arrested for Patient Brokering
11/23/18 Ex-PBSO deputy faces more patient brokering charges
11/5/18 Authorities: Sober-home operator submitted fake insurance claims
10/2/18 Boca lawyer disbarred for role in fraud scheme with ex-Marlins pitcher
9/18/18 Delray man gets probation, fines in patient-brokering scheme
9/12/18 I Save Lives on the Front Lines of South Florida’s Opioid Crisis
9/1/18 How Delray, the nation's relapse capital, got clean
8/31/18 Fix the Florida Shuffle to End Florida’s Opioid Epidemic
8/20/18 “We’re not getting a fair shake.” Delray sober home tests tougher rules
7/24/18 Federal prosecutors could seize 45 South Florida properties tied to fraud scheme
6/27/18 2 addiction treatment center owners indicted after reaping $50 million
6/21/18 Opioid addiction affecting more seniors in recent years
6/19/18 Sovereign Health forced to kick patients out
6/18/18 NEW: Aronberg wins insurance fraud award for sober-homes task force
6/8/18 This woman went to rehab and says it was the worst decision of her life — Here’s why
6/6/18 Doctor pleads guilty in kickback scheme
6/6/18 Congressional committee sends tough questions to drug rehab company
5/25/18 JUST IN: Lantana man arrested on 30 counts of patient brokering
5/19/18 Delray Beach’s tough sober home rules pay off. Other cities follow suit.
5/15/18 Wellington father, daughter sentenced in addiction treatment scam
5/14/18 Boynton man charged with patient brokering for second time
5/2/18 Doctor Convicted in Woman’s Fatal Opioid Overdose
4/8/18 How the Voice of Hockeytown lost his son to drugs and insurance fraud
3/23/18 Quitting Heroin in the Sunshine State
3/14/18 Drug rehab offers out of state patients free plane tickets for treatment
2/21/18 Sober Home and Drug Treatment Center Owned Sentenced: Facilities Preyed on Vulnerable Adults Struggling with Addiction
2/20/18 Legislators, Sober Home Owners Call for Regulation
2/6/18 Rubio asks feds to crack down on Florida sober homes, drug rehabs
11/21/17 Sober Homes Investigation
10/21/17 No water or power? No problem for addicts using drugs in treatment
10/19/17 UPDATE: Sober home task force arrests six; total now tops 40
10/19/17 6 more arrested in sober home patient brokering crackdown
10/13/17 Drug-treatment centers moving out of Palm Beach County, officials say
9/28/17 Sober home trafficker Kenny Chatman ordered to pay millions in restitution
9/27/17 Sober home task force seeks 5-day prescription limit, needle exchange
9/27/17 Stabbing at sober home in upscale Jupiter neighborhood leaves many questions
9/26/17 Jupiter stabbings were at a drug recovery center, HOA says
9/12/17 Two Overdose in Palm Beach Shelters During Hurricane Irma
9/1/17 Reports of Rehab Scams Raise Concerns About Addiction Treatment Quality
8/30/17 “Body Brokers killed my daughter”
8/25/17 Some Rehab Centers Want Addicts to Relapse
8/15/17 “Body Brokers” Get Kickbacks to Lure People with Addictions to Bad Rehab
8/11/17 Woman fatally overdoses at sober home linked to ex-Chatman operative
8/11/17 Sober Homes Task Force arrest two on patient brokering charges
7/27/17 Delray Beach Goes After Big Pharma for Opioid Epidemic
7/17/17 A “sober home” overdose death sheds light on the shady side of Florida’s drug rehab industry
7/20/17 Rehab or a Racket? Sober Living Houses in Florida
7/14/17 Drug overdoses rampant in Delray’s sober home neighborhoods
Nearly 70 percent of overdoses in Delray Beach occur within walking distance, or a quarter-mile, of a sober home.
7/7/17 Delray Beach One Vote Away from New Sober Home Regulations
6/30/17 Sober Homes to Receive Stricter Guidelines
6/29/17 Rehab in Florida turns into nightmare for Ohio kids
6/25/17 Florida’s Billion Dollar Drug Treatment Industry is Plagued by Overdoses, Fraud
The crisis in Florida finally makes national television news with Megan Kelly narrating.
6/20/17 Boynton Beach: New and existing sober homes need to be certified
6/20/17 Haven for Recovering Addicts Now Profits From Their Relapses
5/3/21 Three Florida Men Charged in $46 Million Health Care Fraud, Kickback, and Money Laundering Conspiracy
4/23/21 Lindsay Lohan’s father faces patient brokering charges in South Florida
2/26/21 Boca Raton Doctor Max Citrin Jailed on Insurance Fraud Charge
10/31/20 Serenity sober home CEO sentenced to more than 17 years in prison for health care fraud conviction
9/22/20 City reviews the health and safety of recovery houses
7/31/20 Delray Beach addiction treatment doctor arrested in $681M fraud case
7/22/20 Florida man accused of steering urine tests to drug lab
7/2/20 Lake Park sober home operators charged in $2M kickback, money laundering scheme
7/22/20 Florida man accused of steering urine tests to drug lab
6/15/20 Palm Beach Police: Man stole over $20k worth of luxury items from Palm Beach home
5/20/20 Former PBSO deputy sentenced to 5 years for patient brokering, charity fraud
4/27/20 What happens to people in drug treatment, recovery housing?
4/16/20 Reference Lab, Pain Clinic and Two Individuals Agree to Pay $41 Million to Resolve
Allegations of Unnecessary Urine Drug Testing
3/27/20 CEO, CFO, President and Owner of Sober Homes Network “Serenity
Ranch Recovery” Convicted in $38 Million Fraud Scheme After Six-Week Trial
3/2/20 She wanted addiction treatment. She ended up in the relapse capital of America
2/21/20 PBSO: Former deputy stole money from kids of “warriors”
2/20/20 Sex, drugs and medical fraud? Sober home CEO goes to trial
2/14/20 After bad start to 2020 with overdoses, Lake Worth Beach beefs up chronic nuisance ordinance
2/10/20 Head of sober home certification organization urges reporting of abuses
2/6/20 Sober home owners put their horses first, and now three people are dead
1/24/20 First man in Palm Beach County to be charged with homicide for OD death takes plea
1/21/20 Florida ’sober homes’ owners, clinic directors sentenced to prison for healthcare fraud
12/6/19 Treatment center owner gets 10 years in prison, must pay $24 million
11/15/19 Three South Floridians plead guilty to bilking Aetna, others for drug-abuse treatment
11/14/19 Fort Lauderdale drug dealer gets 30 years for fentanyl death
10/21/19 My Years in the Florida Shuffle of Drug Addiction
10/16/19 Gardens-area man facing multiple patient brokering charges
10/14/19 My Years in the Florida Shuffle of Drug Addiction
8/12/19 Mail-order prescriptions brought ring thousands in patient-brokering kickbacks, police say
7/25/19 A closer look at sober Florida’s sober homes - inside their fatal attraction with Wisconsin’s addicts
7/25/19 Aventura man charged with taking $1 million in kickbacks in opioid rehab scheme, cops say
7/9/19 Jacksonville Beach facility owner pleads guilty in $57M laundering scheme
6/26/19 Delray police: Man paid thousands in patient-brokering kickbacks
6/10/19 Female patient found dead at Centerstone in Bradenton
6/8/19 Woman was detoxing at Centerstone when she died. Mother suspects negligence
6/4/19 Missing New York Woman, 20, Found Dead in Florida After Trip for Rehab
5/22/19 Two years, 30 arrests, 12 convictions: A task force’s track record
5/3/19 Florida Legislature Passes Latest Sober Homes Task Force SUD Treatment and Recovery Residence Legislation
4/19/19 Former West Palm Beach Sober Home Operator Owes IRS $6.5M
4/7/19 Boca man, 75, charged with patient brokering
1/14/19 Sober Home Task Force: Kickbacks for North Palm center totaled nearly $250,000
12/15/19 State Attorney: 2 Arrested for Patient Brokering
11/23/18 Ex-PBSO deputy faces more patient brokering charges
11/5/18 Authorities: Sober-home operator submitted fake insurance claims
10/2/18 Boca lawyer disbarred for role in fraud scheme with ex-Marlins pitcher
9/18/18 Delray man gets probation, fines in patient-brokering scheme
9/12/18 I Save Lives on the Front Lines of South Florida’s Opioid Crisis
9/1/18 How Delray, the nation's relapse capital, got clean
8/31/18 Fix the Florida Shuffle to End Florida’s Opioid Epidemic
8/20/18 “We’re not getting a fair shake.” Delray sober home tests tougher rules
7/24/18 Federal prosecutors could seize 45 South Florida properties tied to fraud scheme
6/27/18 2 addiction treatment center owners indicted after reaping $50 million
6/21/18 Opioid addiction affecting more seniors in recent years
6/19/18 Sovereign Health forced to kick patients out
6/18/18 NEW: Aronberg wins insurance fraud award for sober-homes task force
6/8/18 This woman went to rehab and says it was the worst decision of her life — Here’s why
6/6/18 Doctor pleads guilty in kickback scheme
6/6/18 Congressional committee sends tough questions to drug rehab company
5/25/18 JUST IN: Lantana man arrested on 30 counts of patient brokering
5/19/18 Delray Beach’s tough sober home rules pay off. Other cities follow suit.
5/15/18 Wellington father, daughter sentenced in addiction treatment scam
5/14/18 Boynton man charged with patient brokering for second time
5/2/18 Doctor Convicted in Woman’s Fatal Opioid Overdose
4/8/18 How the Voice of Hockeytown lost his son to drugs and insurance fraud
3/23/18 Quitting Heroin in the Sunshine State
3/14/18 Drug rehab offers out of state patients free plane tickets for treatment
2/21/18 Sober Home and Drug Treatment Center Owned Sentenced: Facilities Preyed on Vulnerable Adults Struggling with Addiction
2/20/18 Legislators, Sober Home Owners Call for Regulation
2/6/18 Rubio asks feds to crack down on Florida sober homes, drug rehabs
11/21/17 Sober Homes Investigation
10/21/17 No water or power? No problem for addicts using drugs in treatment
10/19/17 UPDATE: Sober home task force arrests six; total now tops 40
10/19/17 6 more arrested in sober home patient brokering crackdown
10/13/17 Drug-treatment centers moving out of Palm Beach County, officials say
9/28/17 Sober home trafficker Kenny Chatman ordered to pay millions in restitution
9/27/17 Sober home task force seeks 5-day prescription limit, needle exchange
9/27/17 Stabbing at sober home in upscale Jupiter neighborhood leaves many questions
9/26/17 Jupiter stabbings were at a drug recovery center, HOA says
9/12/17 Two Overdose in Palm Beach Shelters During Hurricane Irma
9/1/17 Reports of Rehab Scams Raise Concerns About Addiction Treatment Quality
8/30/17 “Body Brokers killed my daughter”
8/25/17 Some Rehab Centers Want Addicts to Relapse
8/15/17 “Body Brokers” Get Kickbacks to Lure People with Addictions to Bad Rehab
8/11/17 Woman fatally overdoses at sober home linked to ex-Chatman operative
8/11/17 Sober Homes Task Force arrest two on patient brokering charges
7/27/17 Delray Beach Goes After Big Pharma for Opioid Epidemic
7/17/17 A “sober home” overdose death sheds light on the shady side of Florida’s drug rehab industry
7/20/17 Rehab or a Racket? Sober Living Houses in Florida
7/14/17 Drug overdoses rampant in Delray’s sober home neighborhoods
Nearly 70 percent of overdoses in Delray Beach occur within walking distance, or a quarter-mile, of a sober home.
7/7/17 Delray Beach One Vote Away from New Sober Home Regulations
6/30/17 Sober Homes to Receive Stricter Guidelines
6/29/17 Rehab in Florida turns into nightmare for Ohio kids
6/25/17 Florida’s Billion Dollar Drug Treatment Industry is Plagued by Overdoses, Fraud
The crisis in Florida finally makes national television news with Megan Kelly narrating.
6/20/17 Boynton Beach: New and existing sober homes need to be certified
6/20/17 Haven for Recovering Addicts Now Profits From Their Relapses