Doctor in training stole fentanyl meant for children at WA hospital, feds say
A 35-year-old doctor in training is accused of stealing fentanyl from children at a Washington hospital, federal officials said.
Andrew Voegel-Podadera was charged with two counts of acquiring a controlled substance by misrepresentation, fraud, deception and subterfuge, the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration said in a July 1 news release.
Voegel-Podadera, an anesthesiologist resident, told investigators he stole medication from children and adult patients over the course of a year, and would sometimes administer it intravenously while working, authorities said in a federal complaint.
“Drug addiction spares no one. It can impact anyone. And the literature, in particular, shows greater incidents of drug addiction among medical practitioners than other segments of society because of their exposure and access,” his attorney, Ronald J. Friedman, told McClatchy News by phone July 2. “Dr. Voegel is responding to the matter as best as he can. He’s enrolling in a Washington Physicians Health Program in Washington state designed to help medical professionals stabilize and treat their addiction.”
An investigation into Voegel-Podadera was prompted Dec. 27, when a doctor he was working under at the Seattle Children’s Hospital suspected he was “diverting controlled substances,” a special agent said in the complaint.
That day, Voegel-Podadera treated three children at the hospital, authorities said.
A record of the medication given to those patients said he administered fentanyl and hydromorphone – both potent and powerful narcotics, the agent said.
His records indicated there was wastage in the syringes, yet when the hospital tested them it found nothing but saline solution, according to the complaint.
The physician also suspected Voegel-Podadera was working while under the influence of drugs because of his behavior and “unexplained delays and absences from the operating room,” officials said in the DEA release.
During the investigation, Voegel-Podadera told authorities he had been stealing medicine since January 2024 while on rotations at the University of Washington Medical Center and Harborview Medical Center, prosecutors said.
He told authorities he would draw up the medication, take some and give some to patients, the special agent said.
He is accused of stealing fentanyl, remifentanil, sufentanil and hydromorphone, among other medications, prosecutors said.
The DEA suspended Voegel-Podadera’s prescribing abilities June 12, and he was arrested June 24.
“Diverting medicine away from infant patients is despicable, doubly so if the person involved is a doctor,” David F. Reames, special agent in charge for the DEA Seattle Field Division, said in the news release.
If you or a loved one shows signs of substance use disorder, you can seek help by calling the national hotline at (800) 662-4357 or find treatment using SAMHSA’s online locator.