A nurse practitioner in Stockton agreed to pay $1.4 million to settle allegations that she dispensed controlled substances without any legitimate medical purpose, U.S. Attorney Eric Grant announced Wednesday.  

Joan Rubinger was accused of violating the Controlled Substances Act over 900 times by dispensing prescriptions outside of the course of professional practice. Prosecutors allege she sold prescriptions for controlled substances to people who were not her patients or with whom she never established a bona fide medical provider relationship, “or for whom she failed to identify and document a legitimate medical need for controlled substances,” the government alleged.  

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Katy St. Clair got her start in journalism by working in the classifieds department at the East Bay Express during the height of alt weeklies, then sweet talked her way into becoming staff writer, submissions editor, and music editor. She has been a columnist in the East Bay Express, SF Weekly, and the San Francisco Examiner. Starting in 2015, she begrudgingly scaled the inverted pyramid at dailies such as the Vallejo Times-Herald, The Vacaville Reporter, and the Daily Republic. She has her own independent news site and blog that covers the delightfully dysfunctional town of Vallejo, California, where she also collaborates with the investigative team at Open Vallejo. A passionate advocate for people with developmental disabilities, she serves on both the Board of the Arc of Solano and the Arc of California. She lives in Vallejo.