VA: Arlington Doctor Charged with Illegally Distributing Oxycodone

Healthcare Facility Rx Drug Diversion – Pill Mill

A federal grand jury returned an indictment this week charging an Arlington doctor with distributing tens of thousands of oxycodone pills for almost a decade for no legitimate medical reason.

According to allegations in the indictment, Kirsten Van Steenberg Ball, 68, was a primary care physician who operated a medical practice out of her home in Arlington. Ball allegedly conspired with her office manager to shield the fact that she was dispensing vast quantities of oxycodone to her patients—contrary to ordinary standards of medical care—from law enforcement and regulatory authorities.

The indictment alleges that Ball’s office manager, Candie Marie Calix, 40, of Front Royal, used an alias to disguise the fact that Calix was, herself, a patient of Ball. According to the indictment, Ball allegedly prescribed her office manager approximately 50,000 oxycodone pills over a period of approximately 10 years.

The indictment further alleges that the Virginia Department of Health Professions (DHP) investigated Ball twice: once in 2015 and once in 2021. Despite the two investigations, Ball did not change her prescribing practices. According to the indictment, examples of Ball’s prescriptions include the following:

• Prescribing a patient as many as 360 oxycodone 30-mg tablets per month;
• Prescribing similarly high quantities of oxycodone to close family members;
• Paying a patient to perform manual labor on Ball’s home while concurrently prescribing the patient oxycodone, ostensibly for long-term pain;
• Loaning a patient $40,000 while concurrently prescribing the patient oxycodone;
• Continuing to prescribe oxycodone to patients after they failed drug screens.

Ball is charged with one count of conspiracy to distribute oxycodone, and 21 counts of distribution of oxycodone. If convicted, she faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison on each count. Actual sentences for federal crimes are typically less than the maximum penalties. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after taking into account the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

Calix was sentenced to seven years in prison on September 28, 2022, for conspiring to distribute oxycodone.

Jessica D. Aber, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, and Wayne A. Jacobs, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Washington Field Office Criminal Division, made the announcement.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Katherine E. Rumbaugh is prosecuting the case.

A copy of this press release is located on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia. Related court documents and information are located on the website of the District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia or on PACER by searching for Case No. 1:23-CR-cr-80.

An indictment is merely an accusation. The defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty.

Press Release