Houston Doctor Sentenced To Five Years In Federal Prison On Charges Of Medicare, Medicaid Fraud

A Texas doctor was sentenced to 60 months in Federal custody after being found guilty of defrauding Medicare and Medicaid of $9 million in false charges.

Investigators say the 66-year-old Houston doctor was among nine participants in a conspiracy to submit false bills to the government health care programs. Per prosecutors, his role involved approving unnecessary testing as well as making his physician number available for others to fraudulently bill Medicare.

In the course of the six-day trial last year, prosecutors presented evidence that the practice generated fraudulent bills totaling $13 million, of which $9 million was paid out by the Federal government prior to discovery of the scheme. The trial concluded with a conviction on one count of healthcare fraud and seven counts of healthcare fraud.

Last week, U.S. District Judge Gray H. Miller of the Southern District of Texas sentenced the doctor to 60 months in federal prison, followed by 3 years of supervised release. He also ordered the defendant to pay $4,192,156 in restitution. He was the last of the nine defendants allegedly involved in the conspiracy to be sentenced.

The charges in question are the product of an investigation by the Department of Health and Human Services Office of the Inspector General’s (HHS-OIG), the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the Texas Attorney General’s Medicaid Fraud Control Unit (MFCU).

The Law Offices of Bjorn Brunvand have been representing people charged with capital murder, felony drug charges, drunk driving, government fraud, and white-collar crimes for over a quarter century. Contact our office today to discuss your Tampa Bay-area state or federal charges.