Summary
This case involves a physician who voluntarily surrendered his New York medical license following his federal criminal conviction for health care fraud and conspiracy. The physician was convicted in federal court of health care fraud and conspiracy to commit mail fraud, wire fraud, and health care fraud, receiving a substantial prison sentence of 96 months and ordered to pay over $116 million in restitution. Rather than contest the professional misconduct charges based on these federal convictions, the physician chose to surrender his license and completely cease practicing medicine.
Effective Date: June 28, 2013
Type of Doctor: M.D. (Medical Doctor)
Disposition Type: Voluntary Surrender of License
How many total charges? 1 specification of professional misconduct
What specifications of charges were alleged?
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- First Specification: Violation of New York Education Law §6530(9)(a)(ii) – being convicted of committing an act constituting a crime under federal law (specifically, Health Care Fraud in violation of 18 U.S.C. §§ 1347, and Conspiracy to Commit Mail Fraud, Wire Fraud and Health Care Fraud in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 1349)
How many patients were involved in each charge? The exact number of patients is not specified, but this was a health care fraud case that likely involved multiple patients as victims of the fraudulent billing scheme
Which charges was the licensee guilty of (either via hearing or negotiated consent)? None – the physician chose to surrender his license rather than contest the specification
Which charges was the licensee not guilty of? No determination was made regarding guilt or innocence since the physician voluntarily surrendered his license before any hearing or resolution of the charges
Outcome/Penalties (specific to this case):
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- Voluntary Surrender of License – physician’s name struck from the roster of physicians in New York State
- Complete cessation of medical practice in New York State
- Comprehensive practice closure requirements, including:
- Immediate cessation of practice and delivery of license within 5 days
- Notification of all patients within 15 days and referral to other licensed physicians
- Transfer and maintenance of all medical records with detailed preservation requirements (minimum 6 years retention)
- Surrender of DEA certificate and unused prescription forms within 15 days
- Removal of all professional signage and advertisements within 15 days
- Prohibition on sharing fees or office space with other licensees
- Divestiture of any financial interest in professional service corporations within 90 days
- Potential civil and criminal penalties for non-compliance
Note: The underlying federal conviction resulted in 96 months imprisonment, 3 years supervised release, $116,500,000.00 in restitution, and $200.00 in fees.