A California anesthesiologist pleaded guilty to involvement in a healthcare fraud and kickback scheme, WorkCompCentral reports.
Amir Friedman, MD, of Calabasas, Calif., pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit honest services mail fraud in the Central District of California.
The 54-year-old anesthesiologist had also been charged with receiving about $800,000 in illegal kickbacks to prescribe compounded pharmaceuticals as part of a scheme involving Beverly Hills, Calif.-based New Age Pharmaceuticals.
Primarily targeting workers' compensation carriers, the alleged scheme defrauded Medicare, Medicaid, private carriers and union health benefit plans out of more than $150 million, according to WorkCompCentral.
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