My Mom has MS, can't walk and or feed herself. My sister is taking her meds and selling them. Any advice?

Report your sister to the cops. She needs to be busted.

When you call the police, be sure to tell them that the sister is selling drugs; if they have a drug task force or special detective for that function of illegal activity, they can focus not only on the sister but her "customers".

I suppose you could also call the DEA, although I suspect they focus on larger drugs rings. However, you don't know the scope of the sister's activity.

Just get the police after her.

It wouldn't hurt to contact both the pharmacy and the physician who scripted for the drugs just to make them aware of the situation. If there are refills, the sister could be getting refills and get more drugs to sell.

The State policy may also have a drug task force. Bring out the big guns and get law enforcement after her.

I believe her action also constitutes elder abuse; contact APS - they might be willing to work with the police on protecting your mother.

Forget about POA for now and put your efforts into stopping your sister from selling your mom's medication. You can call the police like Windyridge suggested or you can take the meds out of the house and fill the dispenser somewhere else. Don't try to hide the meds because the sister will find them. Someone needs to take responsibility for those meds and ensure that the sister doesn't get to them anymore.

If your mother is still cognitively intact, she can assign a new Power of Attorney.

I know it sounds harsh to call cops on sis, but what she is doing is truly detestable. Do not assist by looking the other way. MS is a terrible disease, taking someone's Medes is awful, and your own mother's ...... Call police today

That is a felony charge.

You must call the police, and be able to provide real evidence of what she is doing. The police will do very little if you call with a claim that you can't back up. Expect that you will have to go to the police station to file the report. Follow it up with a call to Adult Protective Services once you have a police report number (make sure to get a copy of it). Depending on what entity is paying for your mother's meds - insurance, medicare, medi-caid, etc. you will have to have that information for the police. You must immediately take charge of the medications and ensure that your mother is taking them.

You don't need a POA, you don't need to call the DEA, you don't need to call the pharmacy or the doctor's office. You need to call the police. Your grandmother who has power of attorney must be informed, after the fact. Your sister must be barred from access to the medications. Your grandmother who has POA should also be involved in barring your sister from access.

I don't know why so many people are counseling you to get a POA - that will not solve the immediate problem which is that your mother's meds are being sold so SHE IS NOT ABLE TO TAKE THEM. Who has POA is not the issue - it is your mother's health and safety. Common sense dictates that the problem be solved for your mother's benefit.

This is horrible. I am sure that happens often. When my partner passed, they took all of his drugs and dumped them into a bottle of soapy water and something else and made sure the drugs were out of the house that night. When I think of the two bottles of Morphine, that could bring in money for the person who is a druggie. I can see why they do that. One of the drugs he used was one I use daily. I grabbed that bottle as it was not a narcotic and I will save about two month of buying that scrip We paid for these drugs..I did not feel bad about that at all.

Does your sister live in the same house? Does she have a key to the house that enables her to come and go as she pleases? Rekeying/changing locks may be an option if she does not live with your mom. Report to APS, doctor, and pharmacy. All 3 are mandated reporters. This will likely lead to police reports. Tell them you're not sure how to file a report OR it would create so much conflict witnin your family that you must have help with this. Your mom will likely be interviewed by APS and maybe the police. If you think your mom will defend your sister, let APS know that too. Be prepared to tell them why you're unable to keep the drugs out of your sister's possession i.e. she lives there, has a key to enter and leave as she pleases, always finds the pills, family members feel intimadated etc. Sounds like the POA's capability needs to be reviewed and let the 3 agencies know. Tell APS you need help in resolving the POA issue as well. During this process your sister will likely be contacted by authorities. If you have any documentation or evidence to support your claim that she is taking your mom's pills - too few pills to last the whole month? (Pill bottles give the date filled and the number of pills in the bottle. Try to keep distance between you and your sister during this process. If she needs to do jail time it is her fault. If she does jail time, maybe she can get help - if she hasn't already. Mom is priority but sister has to be helped as well. If sister is not helped her behavior will continue. Mom needs her MS medications, Grandma needs to be divested of POA duties as she can not do the job and deal with your sister too. Mom and you need the relief and peace of mind of knowing your mom is being taken care of properly. Mom needs to be safe and as comfortable and pain-free as possible. Mom has got to be feeling the stress of the family dynamics by now, so changing the sister and grandma roles needs to change too.

Cat is correct. You're going to have some kind of paper trail of this woman's illegal activity to prove it to the police