Prosecutors said Moses deGraft-Johnson, MD, performed hundreds of invasive surgical procedures on patients who didn’t need them and also altered patients’ medical records to reflect procedures he didn’t perform.
In December 2020, Dr. deGraft-Johnson pleaded guilty to 56 counts of healthcare fraud, conspiracy to commit healthcare fraud and aggravated identity theft. In the plea deal, Dr. deGraft-Johnson admitted to performing two invasive diagnostic angiography procedures on hundreds of patients even when it was not necessary. He also acknowledged that when the patients returned for follow-up visits, he submitted fraudulent claims to their insurance companies stating he performed atherectomies during the follow-up appointments. He claimed to have performed more than 3,000 of these surgical procedures to clear blockages in arteries in as many as 845 of his patients’ legs.
As a result of the scheme, prosecutors say Dr. deGraft-Johnson submitted false claims from insurers and received at least $29 million.
In addition to the seven-year prison sentence, Dr. deGraft-Johnson was ordered to forfeit a handful of assets like luxury vehicles, jewelry and homes in New York, Miami and Houston. He was also ordered to pay $28.4 million in restitution.
