New York State's Office of the Professions has just sent last chance letters to nurses licensed with the New York Board of Nursing reporting education completed at one of several now-closed Florida nursing schools. The letters threaten license revocation in thirty days for nurses not responding. Retain the Lento Law Firm's premier Professional License Defense Team immediately if you have received one of these last chance letters. Call us at 888.535.3686 or complete this contact form now.

The Florida Nursing School Scandal

Federal officials alleged that these Florida nursing schools sold fraudulent nursing degrees, without providing the requisite classroom and clinical instruction:

● Siena College/Siena College of Health in Lauderhill;

● Sacred Heart International Institute in Fort Lauderdale;

● Quisqueya School of Nursing or Sunshine Academy in Boynton Beach;

● Quisqueya Health Care Academy in Lake Worth;

● Med-Life Institute in West Palm Beach; and

● Palm Beach School of Nursing in West Palm Beach.

FBI and other federal officials have criminally charged several school officials, while using their evidence to list thousands of nurses nationwide who allegedly purchased fraudulent degrees and transcripts.

New York's Initial Response to the Nursing School Scandal

Nursing boards nationwide have been investigating the education and revoking the licenses of nurses on the FBI list for having earned degrees from these schools. The New York State Education Department, which grants and regulates nursing licenses in the state, is no exception. The Department indicates that hundreds of New York nurses face license revocation or denial due to the scandal. In February 2023 the Department's Office of the Professions notified nurses with credentials from the involved schools that they must prove that their credentials with those schools were legitimate, show alternative acceptable education, or lose their licenses.

New York's Follow-Up to the Nursing School Scandal

New York's Office of the Professions has now reached the point of threatening nurses who did not respond to its initial demand or did not supply satisfactory evidence of legitimate nursing education. The Office's last chance letter warns those nurses that the Office is presuming from their failure to respond that the nurses did not complete the required education and must, therefore, relinquish their license:

“If we do not receive the completed survey, your license parchment or acceptable education from an accredited nursing program in the next 30 days, we will take steps to rescind or revoke your license. All final actions will be public and will affect your future ability to seek licensure in New York or other states or territories.”

Seize Your Last Chance to Document Nursing Education

In its last chance letter, though, New York's Office of the Professions gives those nurses one more opportunity to answer a questionnaire and submit the necessary documentation. The Office offers you “a final opportunity to provide clarification about your education at the school named above or in an alternate acceptable program.”

Do not ignore your last chance letter. Retain the Lento Law Firm's premier Professional License Defense Team to help you acquire and submit proof that you meet New York's nursing education requirements. Call us at 888.535.3686 or complete this contact form now.