PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — A New Jersey pharmacist had her license temporarily suspended and Gloucester County pharmacy shut down after officials said she allegedly operated in unsanitary conditions and interfered with patient medication.
Attorney General Jennifer Davenport announced Tuesday that Nittal Lodha, the owner of Woodbury Family Pharmacy in Woodbury, was suspended on June 24 after repeatedly ignoring patient requests to stop filling their prescriptions.
An investigation that began in 2024 revealed that Lodha would not honor patient requests to transfer prescriptions to other pharmacies, but continued to fill the prescriptions herself instead.
According to a report from the state Board of Pharmacy, one patient told officials that she and her husband would ration medication and take expired pills when Lodha refused to transfer or deliver their prescriptions.
The patient’s husband died and his doctor suggested the rationing may have contributed to his death.
In another case, a patient sought help from a different pharmacist to get their medicine transferred, but Lodha would not answer the pharmacist’s phone calls.
Investigators said Lodha would give patients the wrong dosages and dispense medications in packages with broken safety seals or missing pills.
Among their findings at the pharmacy, investigators said 120 containers of expired medications were found in the active drug stock. In addition, they said the pharmacy was in complete disorder and lacked cleanliness.
Davenport said Lodha caused her patients emotional distress and deterioration of their health. “Patients should be able to trust that their pharmacist won’t endanger their health or make it harder for them to access lifesaving medications,” she said, “so when a licensed pharmacist harms patients by allegedly disregarding basic safety standards and interfering with their right to obtain needed treatment from the pharmacy of their choosing, we will take action to protect the public.”
Lodha could seek limited reinstatement of her license if she were to meet several conditions set by the Board of Pharmacy, including the completion of a 400-hour internship.
Authorities say Nittal Lodha also operated in complete disorder with a lack of cleanliness
Authorities say Nittal Lodha also operated in complete disorder with a lack of cleanliness
