NYS Health Department bars 21 providers from vaccinating kids amid fraud crackdown

Key Points:

• Over the past four years, the New York State Department of Health has suspended or permanently barred 21 healthcare providers, including nine from Long Island, for suspected vaccine fraud, following investigations by the state's vaccine fraud unit established in 2021.
• Notable cases include former Baldwin midwife Jeanette Breen and former Amityville nurse practitioner Julie DeVuono, who falsified vaccine records for nearly 1,500 and 162 children respectively, representing some of the largest known immunization fraud schemes in the U.S.
• The fraud includes repeated use of the same vaccine vial identifiers, reporting of non-existent vaccine lot numbers, and delayed or falsified immunization records, with some providers asserting immunity from state mandates on tribal or religious grounds, claims rejected by courts.
• The state's public "school vaccination fraud awareness" website lists these providers, warning schools against accepting their records, but some medical professionals and their attorneys argue this public naming damages reputations without due process and before investigations conclude.
• Vaccine skepticism has increased nationally, and New York's 2019 elimination of religious exemptions to school vaccine requirements may have contributed to a rise in falsified records; experts emphasize the importance of holding providers accountable to protect public health and prevent outbreaks.