Digital mental health startup Cerebral has reached a nonprosecution agreement with the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of New York.

The agreement resolves the investigation of Cerebral’s policies and practices for controlled substance prescribing, specifically stimulants for ADHD. The company now faces fines totaling $6.57 million, according to a copy of the nonprosecution agreement released by the district attorney’s office.

Nonprosecution agreements are contracts in which investigating agencies — such as the U.S. Department of Justice or the Securities and Exchange Commission — forego filing charges in exchange for commitments of and demonstrations of good conduct, according to westlaw.com.

“With this resolution, Cerebral looks forward to pursuing its mission of providing the highest quality, affordable and accessible mental healthcare with even greater focus,” a representative of Cerebral said in a statement.

Of the potential $6.57 million in fines, $3.65 million is forfeited proceeds related to revenue earned in violation of federal law related to the prescription of ADHD medications. The other $2.92 million is a penalty that the district attorney’s office has agreed to waive, dependent on Cerebral’s compliance with the agreement and financial performance.

“Cerebral has represented to the Office that Cerebral is unable to pay the monetary penalty,” the agreement states. “Based on those representations and supportive documentation provided by Cerebral, the Office agrees to defer the monetary payment… unless the Office determines that Cerebral’s financial performance has materially changed such that payment of all or a portion of the monetary penalty would be warranted.”

The nonprosecution agreement is effective for 30 months.

Breon Peace, the U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of New York, said in a news release that Cerebral sought to drive up profits by pushing its clinicians to prescribe ADHD medications and other controlled substances. Peace also noted that the company has taken “significant steps” to address the issues that led to the scrutinized practices.

“This resolution ensures that Cerebral will be financially accountable for its unacceptable conduct and serves as a reminder to the healthcare industry that my office is committed to ensuring patient safety and protecting the public from business practices like those of Cerebral,” Peace said.

The resolution of the investigation is a major milestone for the company. The meteoric rise of the digital mental health startup was followed by three years of scandal and critical examination by the news media and investigators. Earlier this year, Cerebral settled an investigation with the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) over its privacy and cancellation practices.

That settlement, announced in April, totaled $15 million but also included a provision that could allow portions of those penalties to be waived.

At one time, Cerebral was the fancy of the venture capital-backed mental health startup world — timing its arrival in the digital mental health funding book perfectly and big-name partnerships with the likes of superstars like Simone Biles. 

Founded in 2019, the company has raised $462 million in funding, according to Crunchbase.com. It secured a $4.8 billion valuation in its last funding round.

Over the years, Cerebral has endured the ousting of and a legal fight with its founder and ex-CEO Kyle Robertson, a series of layoffs and abandoned controlled substance prescribing altogether.

This settlement with the district attorney’s office is a much rosier outcome than that of a similarly situated peer. Top leaders of the digital ADHD and mental health care provider Done Global were arrested in June on several criminal allegations over the management of controlled substances.