A Los Angeles internist has been sentenced to 21 months in prison after pleading guilty to his involvement in a $15 million healthcare fraud scheme. He also faces the possibility of losing his medical license, according to an Orange County Register report.
Gershon Hepner, MD, pleaded guilty to conspiring with 16 others in providing unnecessary respiratory treatments to the elderly and mentally ill. He admitted the services were later billed to Medicare and Medi-Cal. Dr. Hepner and his co-conspirators also paid kickbacks to the patients in the form of soda, candy, donuts and cigarettes. In some instances, treatment was never provided to the recruited patients. More than $400,000 was reimbursed to Dr. Hepner in Medicare funds, with one-third of the funds going toward paying kickbacks to continuously recruit more patients, according to the report.
The California Medical Board is looking to have Dr. Hepner's license revoked. This would be the second time the physician lost his license. Records provided by the medical board show Dr. Hepner lost his license for the first time in 1995 after pleading guilty to hiring patient recruiters and submitting false claims to insurance companies, sometimes for medical services that were never rendered.
Read the Orange County Register's report about Dr. Gershon Hepner's fraud conviction.
Read other coverage about healthcare fraud in California:
- Former Los Angeles Hospital Executive Sentenced to Two Years in Prison for Healthcare Fraud
- Santa Monica's Saint John's Health Center to Pay $5.25M Settlement in Fraud Case
- California Pathologist Sentenced to 25 Years in Prison for Prescription Fraud
Gershon Hepner, MD, pleaded guilty to conspiring with 16 others in providing unnecessary respiratory treatments to the elderly and mentally ill. He admitted the services were later billed to Medicare and Medi-Cal. Dr. Hepner and his co-conspirators also paid kickbacks to the patients in the form of soda, candy, donuts and cigarettes. In some instances, treatment was never provided to the recruited patients. More than $400,000 was reimbursed to Dr. Hepner in Medicare funds, with one-third of the funds going toward paying kickbacks to continuously recruit more patients, according to the report.
The California Medical Board is looking to have Dr. Hepner's license revoked. This would be the second time the physician lost his license. Records provided by the medical board show Dr. Hepner lost his license for the first time in 1995 after pleading guilty to hiring patient recruiters and submitting false claims to insurance companies, sometimes for medical services that were never rendered.
Read the Orange County Register's report about Dr. Gershon Hepner's fraud conviction.
Read other coverage about healthcare fraud in California:
- Former Los Angeles Hospital Executive Sentenced to Two Years in Prison for Healthcare Fraud
- Santa Monica's Saint John's Health Center to Pay $5.25M Settlement in Fraud Case
- California Pathologist Sentenced to 25 Years in Prison for Prescription Fraud