{"id":51809,"date":"2023-01-09T21:23:25","date_gmt":"2023-01-10T05:23:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cjnotebook.com\/?p=51809"},"modified":"2023-01-09T21:38:41","modified_gmt":"2023-01-10T05:38:41","slug":"doctor-sentenced-to-20-years-in-prison-for-billing-for-fraudulent-tests-and-treatments","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cjnotebook.com\/?p=51809","title":{"rendered":"Doctor Sentenced to 20 Years in Prison for Billing for Fraudulent Tests and Treatments"},"content":{"rendered":"

FLORIDA<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

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\"\"A 48-year-old Florida doctor was sentenced Monday to 20 years in prison for engaging in a massive multi-year scheme to bill health care benefit programs for fraudulent tests and treatments involving vulnerable patients, officials stated.<\/span><\/p>\n

Patients were seeking treatment for drug and\/or alcohol addiction, according to authorities.<\/span><\/p>\n

This case was brought as part of the Department of Justice\u2019s Sober Homes Initiative. It is the largest addiction fraud treatment case charged by the Department of Justice, officials stated.<\/span><\/p>\n

According to court documents, Michael J. Ligotti, D.O., 48, of Delray Beach, served as Medical Director or Authorizing Physician for over 50 sober homes, substance abuse treatment facilities, and clinical testing laboratories in the Palm Beach County area.<\/span><\/p>\n

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Michael J. Ligotti, D.O.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\"health,<\/a>He often signed standing orders for expensive, medically unnecessary urine drug tests for patients at various addiction treatment facilities. <\/span><\/p>\n

These facilities routinely sent patients\u2019 urine specimens to clinical testing laboratories, which then billed health care benefit programs for unnecessary urine drug tests, often thousands of dollars for a single test. <\/span><\/p>\n

In exchange for Ligotti\u2019s authorization of these urine drug tests, the treatment centers required their patients to regularly visit Ligotti\u2019s clinic, Whole Health LLC, for additional treatment and testing, or allowed Ligotti\u2019s staff to come to their facilities to conduct tests and treatment there.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"america,\u201cFor nearly a decade, Michael Ligotti exploited vulnerable patients seeking addiction treatment, a reprehensible abuse of trust by a physician,\u201d said Assistant Attorney General Kenneth A. Polite, Jr. of the Justice Department\u2019s Criminal Division. \u201cThis defendant will now serve many years in federal prison for using his medical license to authorize fraudulent tests and treatments for addicted patients at treatment centers and sober homes throughout South Florida. This marks the largest addiction fraud treatment case ever charged by the Department of Justice, demonstrating our continuing commitment to tackling health care fraud throughout the country.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

\"doctor,<\/a>This allowed Ligotti to profit by billing patients\u2019 private health insurance plans for duplicative, medically unnecessary, and expensive urine drug tests, blood tests, and other addiction treatments. <\/span><\/p>\n

As a result of this conduct, which took place from 2011 to 2020, health care benefit programs were billed over $746 million and paid approximately $127 million for fraudulent urine drug tests and addiction treatments. <\/span><\/p>\n

Ligotti pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit health care and wire fraud in the Southern District of Florida in October 2022 and was ordered today to surrender his medical license. \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThe victims are real, and the losses are immense,\u201d said Acting Special Agent in Charge Chad Yarbrough of the FBI Miami Field Office. \u201cInstead of ensuring the proper treatment of the vulnerable patients under his care in over 50 sober homes, Michael J. Ligotti gamed the system for millions of dollars in ill-gotten gains.”<\/span><\/p>\n

Senior Litigation Counsel James V. Hayes and Trial Attorney Ligia M. Markman of the Criminal Division\u2019s Fraud Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Alexandra Chase, Chief, Transnational, Trafficking & Cyber Crimes Unit for the Southern District of Florida prosecuted the case.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

FLORIDA A 48-year-old Florida doctor was sentenced Monday to 20 years in prison for engaging in a massive multi-year scheme to bill health care benefit programs for fraudulent tests and treatments involving…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":51810,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-51809","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-u-s-department-of-justice"],"yoast_head":"\nDoctor Sentenced to 20 Years in Prison for Billing for Fraudulent Tests and Treatments<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"FLORIDA A 48-year-old Florida doctor was sentenced Monday to 20 years in prison for engaging in a massive multi-year scheme to bill health care benefit\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link 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