Doctor admits to performing thousands of unnecessary angiography exams in $29M fraud scheme
A heart surgeon pleaded guilty last week to 56 counts of fraud after the feds pinned him with performing thousands of unnecessary angiography exams and falsely billing insurance companies for more than $29 million.
Moses deGraft-Johnson, MD, a cardiovascular surgeon who owned and operated the Heart and Vascular Institute of North Florida, a Tallahassee-based outpatient catheterization center, admitted to healthcare fraud, conspiracy to commit fraud, and aggravated identity theft, according to the Department of Justice.
Beginning in late 2015, deGraft-Johnson, 46, performed two invasive angiography procedures—one on each leg—on hundreds of patients, whether required or not. During patients’ follow-up visits, he would fraudulently bill insurers for atherectomies, a different minimally invasive procedure for removing plaque from blood vessels.
Under this scheme, he falsely claimed performing more than 3,000 of these operations in up to 845 of his patients’ legs. deGraft-Johnson’s actions netted him at least $29 million and “likely” more, according to the DOJ.
“deGraft-Johnson’s unscrupulous behavior placed the lives of his many patients at risk while siphoning funds from vital healthcare programs for personal gain,” Omar Pérez Aybar, special agent in charge for the Office of Inspector General of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, said in a statement. “We will continue to work with our law enforcement partners to hold accountable health care professionals who prioritize greed over critical patient care.”
The DOJ is “aggressively” pursuing the surgeon’s forfeitable assets, including luxury vehicles, jewelry, homes in New York, Miami, and Houston, along with more than $1 million in cash.
deGraft-Johnson’s trial is scheduled for April of next year. He faces a maximum of 10 years in prison for each charge, a mandatory two-year sentence for identity theft and more than $250,000 in possible fines.
Matt joined Chicago’s TriMed team in 2018 covering all areas of health imaging after two years reporting on the hospital field. He holds a bachelor’s in English from UIC, and enjoys a good cup of coffee and an interesting documentary.