FARMINGTON, Utah, Sept. 7, 2019 (Gephardt Daily) — A Farmington woman is facing felony charges after police say she altered medical charts in order to obtain opioids.
Charlene Jensen, 45, has been charged with 10 counts of forgery, a third-degree felony.
A probable cause statement filed in the case says that in May of this year, “Defendant sought treatment and pain medication from Huntsman Cancer Institute. Defendant spoke with a physician’s assistant, who questioned the inconsistencies in Defendant’s medical records.
“During this encounter, defendant admitted that she had been faking cancer in order to obtain narcotic drugs.”
The admission prompted an investigation into defendant’s medical history, the probable cause statement says.
“During the course of this investigation police discovered defendant, who was previously an employee for the University of Utah Hospital, had used her employee login to change, manipulate, and/or create false medical records in her personal medical history in order to obtain narcotic drugs.
“Police reviewed the letters presented to DCAO stating that defendant
had been diagnosed with cancer. However, in speaking to these physicians, police discovered that many doctors had no records of ever treating defendant as a patient. Some of the doctors had treated defendant, but not as outlined in the letters. In all instances, the physician letters presented to DCAO were all forged.”
A review of medical records found no evidence Jensen had ever had cancer, the statement said.
Jensen was arrested by Farmington police and booked into the Davis County Jail on Thursday. She was released after paying bail.
