January 15, 2024 Recent Legal News
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US v Thiara
Guilty
Dr. Jasser Thiara, OB/GYN in the Fairfax, Virginia, area plead guilty of income tax evasion. He agreed to pay $3.1 million in taxes for his scheme of bogus business deductions of his business and false individual claims as well. He also got kickbacks from pharmacies from pharmacies owned by Mohamed Abdulla. Abdulla ws sentenced to four years in prison and Thiara faces a possible 3 years in prison.
New York v Giacopelli
Arrested
Dr. Paul Giacopelli of Putnam County, New York , was arrested for allegedly a woman anesthesia and then sexually molesting her.
Indiana v Jackson
Sentenced
Timothy Jackson, RN, was previously convicted of rape of a patient at Methodist Hospital Northlake. He was sentenced to 7 and one half years in prison.
Florida v Knighten
Arrested
Tamesha Knighten, LVN, of Lakeland,
Texas v Avila
Guilty
Nora Avila of Laredo has plead guilty to impersonating a nurse. She stole the identity of another to gain access to hospitals and nursing homes.
Tennessee v Tucker
Arrested
In another blunder by the state, authorities have arrested a nurse's aide for negligent homicide. They say she failed to properly use a loft to move a patient resulting in the patient's death.
US v Elfenbein
Judge
Dr. Ron Elfenbein in August was convicted of five counts of fraud for upcoding. The physician filed a motion for acquittal and the same judge that convicted him now vacated the conviction. The physician billed for level 4 EM codes for Covid test evaluations. The judge said EM codes are imprecise and that the physician used his best judgment.
US v Heidinger
Settlement
Dr. Wendell Heidinger of Grants Pass, Oregon, agreed to pay $115,000 to settle allegations that he billed for frequency specific microcurrent treatments to fed med. This is not a covered service.
US v Methodist Le Bonheur
Healthcare
Settlement
The Memphis, Tennessee, system agreed to pay about $7 million to settle allegations that they paid kickbacks and then billed for the services. This is a qui tam and the former execs will get a payout form this.
US v Atlantic Home Care
Settlement
The home health company agreed to pay $ almost $10 million to settle allegations that they billed for in home care when people did not actually go the homes. This qui tam suit will give former HR person about $1.7 million.
Texas v US
5th Circuit
The 5th Circuit agreed with the lower court that the Biden administration overstepped their authority. They ruled that ED physicians do not have to perform abortions on patients in order to stabilize them under EMTALA laws. They state that EMTALA does state the requirement to deliver an unborn child and it was up to the doctors to balance the medical needs of the mothers and fetus while complying with any state laws.
Patients v Novant Health
Settlement
The North Carolina health sysstem agreed to pay $$6.6 million to settle a class action suit that accused them of using a tracking pixel on their website against HIPAA rules. A suit against others in the state is still pending.
Kowalski v Johns Hopkins
Judge
After the jury awarded the plaintiff $94 million the hospital filed an action of juror misconduct. The judge ruled in favor of the juror and so the monetary penalty stands for now.
Johnson v Baylor Scott White Institute
for Rehabilitation
Filed
Eddie Johnson, a former US Representative from Texas died and the institute is being accused of neglect. The suit claims that Ms. Johnson was post op back surgery and found lying in her own urine and feces and she developed an infection after that which led to her having more surgery and her demise.
DISCLAIMER: Although this article is updated periodically, it reflects the author's point of view at the time of publication. Nothing in this article constitutes legal advice. Readers should consult with their own legal counsel before acting on any of the information presented.