Pharmacist Fadi Abid asks Board to end probation early after two years of compliance

A disciplinary committee of the California Board of Pharmacy heard testimony March 12 on a petition by pharmacist Fadi Atif Nasar Abid to end probation early following a stay of license revocation and a three-year probation imposed in 2022.

Administrative Law Judge Heather Rowan presided over the hearing and Deputy Attorney General Nicole Trauma summarized the accusation that led to the sanction: while acting as pharmacist in charge at River’s Edge Pharmacy, the accusation said, Abid allowed distribution and warehousing practices that violated applicable pharmacy law and allowed unlicensed staff to sign for and receive dangerous drugs. The license revocation became effective Aug. 24, 2022, but was stayed and Abid’s license was placed on probation for three years.

Abid’s attorney, Ivan Petrozelka, told the committee that Abid has been fully compliant with the terms of probation, including quarterly reporting and payment of an administrative fine, and has completed the required remedial education and an ethics course. Petrozelka argued Abid had taken substantial remedial and professional-development steps and asked the committee to end probation early.

Abid testified under oath that a lack of experience contributed to the lapses that led to discipline, and that he accepts responsibility. He told the committee he stepped down from the pharmacist-in-charge role, has worked with an experienced consultant pharmacist, and completed multiple specialty courses — including sterile compounding and IVIG specialty training — as well as ongoing internal auditing and staff training he said were implemented after the settlement.

Raffi Simonian, the consultant pharmacist retained to audit River’s Edge, testified he began monthly inspections in October 2023 and said he had performed more than two dozen visits, worked with the leadership team to revise policies and procedures, and verified operational changes addressing the problems identified in the accusation. Simonian described specific steps taken, including a stricter receipt and quarantine policy for shipments not signed by a pharmacist, updated reverse-distributor procedures, and upgrades to sterile-compounding workflows and software intended to meet USP <797> requirements. He told the committee he would recommend granting the petition and said that, in his view, Abid had been rehabilitated and the pharmacy’s systems now provided stronger safeguards.

Deputy Attorney General Trauma presented the case history and exhibits, and noted the record the committee received, including the petition packet and seven letters of recommendation. She did not oppose admission of the petition packet as evidence but summarized the underlying facts from the accusation for the committee’s consideration.

Committee members questioned Abid about the original practices at River’s Edge, his role and oversight as pharmacist in charge, and the specific training and process changes he has undertaken. Abid described auditing, staff training, and the decision to step down from sole leadership so he could learn under more experienced managers.

The record was closed at the end of the hearing and the matter was submitted to the committee for deliberation in closed session. No final vote or decision was announced at the March 12 meeting.

The committee has not yet released a written decision; the matter will be resolved following the board’s closed-session deliberations.