A midwife in New York has been fined $300,000 for administering homeopathic pellets to 1,500 children instead of required vaccinations for diseases such as hepatitis, measles, and polio.
The state’s Department of Health announced the penalty on Wednesday following an investigation that revealed Jeanette Breen had entered nearly 12,500 false vaccine records into New York’s Immunization Information System since 2019.
This settlement marks the first of its kind for creating falsified immunization records, according to the department.
The pellets, supplied by an out-of-state homeopath and administered orally in a series, are not approved by the Food and Drug Administration or the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention as immunizing agents, the department stated.
Erin Clary, a public information officer with New York’s health department, explained that the scheme indicated that parents or guardians of the affected children “sought out and paid Breen related to their children’s immunizations and immunization records,” though they were not the focus of the investigation.
Breen declined to comment when approached, and her attorney David Ekew confirmed that she cooperated fully upon being informed of the investigation.
“She paid the fine, entered into the stipulation of settlement, and intends to fully comply with the requirements of the agreement,” Ekew stated.
“From her perspective, this matter is over, done with, and closed, and she is now moving on with her life.”
The children involved, aged approximately 4 to 18 years old, attended around 300 different schools, primarily on Long Island where Breen practiced.
Their falsified immunization records have been nullified, necessitating that they receive all required vaccinations before returning to school.
Notably, none of the falsified records were for COVID-19 vaccines; rather, they included vaccines for tetanus, hepatitis B, chickenpox, and measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR).
Under New York law, healthcare providers must accurately submit vaccination information to the state’s immunization system.
The state’s elimination of religious and other nonmedical exemptions to vaccine mandates for schoolchildren in 2019 preceded Breen’s initiation of the falsification scheme, following significant measles outbreaks affecting over 1,100 individuals.
Dr. Arthur Caplan, head of the division of medical ethics at the NYU Grossman School of Medicine, recalled encountering Breen’s name in Facebook groups discussing ways to evade vaccination requirements before the penalty announcement.
“She put so many people at risk for communicable diseases by lying,” Caplan remarked.
Breen has paid $150,000 of her fine, with the remainder suspended contingent on her adherence to state laws and the settlement’s terms.
These terms prohibit her from accessing the New York State Immunization Information System or administering any vaccine reported therein.
While Caplan advocates for revoking Breen’s license in light of her dishonesty and the risks posed to the public, the New York State Education Department, responsible for prosecuting misconduct among medical professionals, including license revocation, declined to comment on Breen’s case due to confidentiality reasons.
The New York State Association of Licensed Midwives condemned the vaccine fraud, stating its opposition to actions that harm the public and asserting its stance against outliers in the profession who operate outside clinical and moral standards.
They emphasized that the actions of one midwife should not overshadow the work of over a thousand midwives in New York.
Although Breen’s penalty is a precedent in New York, a California doctor faced arrest in 2021 for falsifying COVID-19 vaccination records after administering similar homeopathic pellets.
