This weekly roundup features arrests, criminal proceedings, and other reports alleging improper or questionable conduct by healthcare professionals.
Molestation charges against a Pennsylvania pediatrician were dismissed by the state’s medical board in 2000, but he was eventually convicted of sexually assaulting 31 children, and was sentenced this week to 79 years in prison. His own wife testified against him at sentencing. (AP via TIME)
A Connecticut doctor who fled to Canada to escape arrest in July was tracked down, convicted, and sentenced to 7 years in prison for his role in a $5-million Medicaid fraud scheme. Prosecutors said he diverted funds collected for patient visits that never happened to fund his own lavish spending and his girlfriend’s rent. (Hartford Courant)
Another man was on the run for nearly 2 years before he was captured in Florida and sentenced to 20 years in prison on fraud charges. He had assumed numerous false identities — including that he was a Harvard-trained psychiatrist. (The Tennessean)
A Florida pharmacist was sentenced to a decade in prison for his involvement in a $100-million fraud scheme in which he and eight associates submitted false claims for pain and scar creams. They spent the proceeds on luxury vehicles, real estate, and a 50-foot boat, which were all seized by the government as part of the sentencing. (Justice.gov)
An elementary school nurse in Indiana was charged with counts of misconduct, neglect of a dependent, and theft after allegedly stealing her students’ amphetamines and Ritalin for her own use, and replacing the pills with baby aspirin. (Fox6Now)
In wake of the infamous 2018 Larry Nassar case, in which the ex-Olympic gymnastics team doctor was sentenced to a maximum of 175 years in prison for molesting several young girls, 51 women are reportedly suing the U.S. Olympic Committee for violating Title IX and the Constitution by not intervening sooner. (AP via NBC)
Two executives at now-defunct Primera Medical Group (one a licensed chiropractor) were sentenced to prison terms for their role in an allergy testing scheme in which they bagged more than $8.5 million in insurance payments by billing allergy immunotherapy injections and blood tests that were never completed. (Atlanta Journal-Constitution)
An Arizona physician, whose license was revoked last year amidst suspicions of substance abuse and other misconduct involving drugs, was indicted for conspiring to murder a former employee and patient who had spoken with DEA investigators. (Herald/Review)
A Tennessee woman is seeking more than $25 million in damages from Vanderbilt University Medical Center, claiming a doctor implanted a mesh tube in the wrong kidney in 2017, which caused her to require dialysis for the rest of her life. This is the third suit filed against the Vanderbilt medical center this year alleging a dangerous medical error. (The Tennessean)
Source: MedicalNewsToday.com
