A federal jury in the United States found a physician of Indian heritage guilty on several charges of healthcare fraud. 48-year-old Bensalem, Pennsylvania resident named Neil K. Anand was convicted of conspiring to submit fraudulent and false claims to Anthem, Independence Blue Cross (IBC), the US Office of Personnel Management (OPM), and Medicare. The claims concerned “Goody Bags”, which are pre-packaged sets of prescription drugs that are dispensed by Anand’s in-house pharmacies, according to a statement from the Department of Justice (DOJ).
In order to obtain prescriptions for controlled substances, Anand and his accomplices made patients accept the Goody Bags, which they neither needed nor desired, according to evidence presented during the trial. For these needless drugs, Medicare, OPM, IBC, and Anthem collectively spent more than USD 2.3 million. Meanwhile, during the the trial the sort off evidence represents in front of the Federal Jury that reflects in order for patients to receive prescriptions for controlled substances, Anand and his co-conspirators made them accept the Goody Bags, which they did not need or desire.
Additionally, Anand was found guilty of planning to distribute oxycodone without a valid medical reason and outside the bounds of professional practice. Anand allegedly pre-signed blank prescriptions that were used by unlicensed medical interns.Nine patients received a total of 20,850 oxycodone tablets from Anand as part of the program.
Anand transferred about USD 1.2 million into an account in his father’s name, created for the benefit of his young daughter, in an effort to hide the proceeds of crime after learning that he was being investigated.A US federal jury found Anand guilty of conspiring to commit wire fraud and healthcare fraud on April 15.He is also charged with conspiracy to distribute controlled substances, money laundering, and illegal financial transactions.Anand’s sentence starts on August 19 and carries a maximum statutory penalty of 130 years in prison. Taking into account the US Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory provisions, a federal district court judge will determine a sentence for him.
