Olivia Franklin
MARTIN COUNTY — A Jensen Beach woman was charged with practicing medicine without an active license after someone said she was using their name and medical status to perform procedures.
Meghan Rose Pagano, 38, of the 700 block of Northwest Waterlily Place in Jensen Beach, was charged Sept. 1 with possessing the identity of another person without consent and practicing medicine without an active license, according to her arrest affidavit on Sept. 8.
On April 22 a Martin County detective was contacted by an official from the Investigative Service Unit of the Florida Health Department accusing a woman of practicing medicine without a license.
They told the detective a woman from Pasco County wrote to the Health Department that she found a woman, later identified as Pagano, was using her name and medical license status on social media and owned a business called "Treasure Coast Aesthetic and Wellness Center," according to the complaint affidavit. The official looked up the business, that said the owner was Pagano, and it was located at 2201 Southeast Indian Street in Stuart.
On May 7, the detective spoke with an investigator from the Florida Health Department. The investigator said he went to the business undercover and was given a tour of the gym and Aesthetic and Wellness Center by Pagano. She told the investigator she was licensed as a nurse practitioner and offered Botox injections, according to the complaint affidavit.
The detective spoke with the woman from Pasco County who said she got messages online about a woman who was using her name and medical license to administer Botox, fillers, and other procedures. She said she looked through social media and did not recognize Pagano and has never met her.
The detective then looked through social media accounts on Instagram and found one with the woman's name that had over 120 posts and listed services she provided. From January to August, the detective viewed several posts and video reels posted and identified the woman as Pagano, according to the complaint affidavit.
The detective searched the Florida Division of Corporations and learned that Pagano was listed as the CEO ofTreasure Coast Aesthetics & Wellness Center, LLC with an address at 2181 Southeast Flanders Road in Port St. Lucie.
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The detective contacted the original official, who had conducted a search of Florida Department of Health's License database and confirmed Pagano was a licensed electrologist, someone who could perform electrolysis, the permanent removal of hair using equipment approved by the Board of Medicine, according to the complaint affidavit. The official also confirmed that Pagano did not have a license to be a massage therapist, advanced practice registered nurse, or any medical license allowing her to perform Botox or fillers.
It was found that Pagano was advertising herself as a nurse practitioner by using the name and credentials of a woman who is a licensed advanced registered nurse practitioner and she was actively conducting procedures that require a medical license which she did not have, according to the complaint affidavit.
She was jailed Sept. 1 and has since been released on $20,000 bond.
Olivia Franklin is a breaking news reporter for TCPalm. Follow Olivia on X @Livvvvv_5 or reach her by phone at 317-627-8048. E-mail her at [email protected].