Dr. Jerrold Rosenberg Sentenced in Fentanyl Kickback Scam

PROVIDENCE, RI — Dr. Jerrold N. Rosenberg, 63, of Warren, is headed to federal prison for 51 months after being sentenced today for healthcare fraud and conspiring to accept kickbacks to prescribe Subsys, a fast-acting and highly addictive fentanyl spray. Rosenberg, who operated a now-shuttered pain management practice in Rhode Island, admitted to defrauding insurers and endangering patients for profit.

Subsys, manufactured by Insys Therapeutics of Arizona, was approved by the FDA in 2012 solely for breakthrough cancer pain in opioid-tolerant patients. Despite this narrow medical use, Rosenberg repeatedly prescribed it to patients who didn’t qualify. He lied to insurers—both private and government-funded—claiming patients met strict criteria, when he knew they didn’t. The scam led to over $750,000 in fraudulent claims, much of it paid by Medicare.

At today’s hearing, three former patients took the stand to deliver gut-wrenching testimony. They described falling into addiction, losing jobs, and suffering severe health consequences—all while begging Rosenberg to stop the prescriptions. Witnesses said he dismissed their pain, ignored withdrawal pleas, and kept the Subsys flowing. His office became a pipeline for a drug known to hook patients fast.

Rosenberg pleaded guilty on October 25, 2017, admitting he conspired with Insys officials to pocket over $188,000 in sham speaker fees in exchange for prescribing the drug. He acknowledged these payments directly influenced his medical decisions. Even more damning, court records show his son worked as an Insys sales rep from June 2012 to September 2013, raking in heavy commissions from his father’s prescriptions.

The U.S. Sentencing Guidelines called for 51 to 63 months. Prosecutors pushed for the max—63 months—but U.S. District Court Judge John J. McConnell, Jr. settled on 51. On top of prison time, Rosenberg was ordered to pay $754,736.48 in restitution to the Medicare program—a small fraction of the human and financial toll he inflicted.

The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Lee H. Vilker and Zachary A. Cunha and investigated by the U.S. Attorney’s Office, HHS-OIG’s Boston Office, and Rhode Island’s Medicaid Fraud and Patient Abuse Unit. U.S. Attorney Stephen G. Dambruch, HHS-OIG Special Agent-in-Charge Phillip Coyne, and Attorney General Peter F. Kilmartin jointly announced the outcome. Rosenberg’s fall marks another crack in the corrupt network that fueled the opioid epidemic.