A New York cardiologist was sentenced to 20 months in prison for running a healthcare fraud scheme that lasted more than 10 years, the Department of Justice said May 20.
Asim Hameedi, MD, previously pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit healthcare fraud. Dr. Hameedi was president and owner of a clinic in New York City called City Medical Associates.
According to the indictment, court filings and proceedings, Dr. Hameedi worked with co-conspirators to falsify patients' symptoms to get prior authorizations for medical tests and procedures. He also backdated bills to get around prior authorization requirements, submitted false claims to insurers and violated HIPAA by viewing patients' EHRs without authorization, among other actions, according to the Department of Justice.
The scheme, which ran from 2003-15, led to millions of dollars in false claims over the course of 12 years, according to the indictment, court filings and proceedings.