Allegiant Experts
Jun 13, 20192 min
Make no mistake about it – drugs are scary. Now, don’t
get us wrong. We’re well aware that prescription medications are made with the
intent of providing relief for a wide variety of ailments. When prescribed by a
doctor for a specific patient with a specific medical issue, meds are generally
healthful choices. However, when in the wrongs hands, attained by illegal means
and abused for recreational purposes, drugs can have disastrous effects on
people.
You’ll notice that the Allegiant Experts Blog has
paid pretty close to attention to this subject matter in recent months. It’s no
secret that the United States is currently facing an opioid epidemic. However,
opioids aren’t the only types of drugs that are being attainted illegally. In
fact, prescription medications of all kinds are often used in schemes to
defraud our nation’s health insurance programs.
51 year-old, Scott Novick of Hollywood, Florida is one of the most recent perpetrators of health care fraud to go down for operating a “pill mill”. As reported by the United States Department of Justice today, the pain clinic and pharmacy owner was just sentenced to 78 months in prison, followed by three years of supervised release for his role in a $2.2 million Medicare fraud scheme. Novick was also ordered to forfeit approximately $1.4 million.
“Novick had previously pleaded guilty to one count
of conspiracy to commit health care fraud,” informs the DoJ report, “As part of
his plea agreement, Novick agreed to liquidate several financial accounts worth
approximately $1,329,886, the proceeds of which were ordered at sentencing to
be paid back to Medicare.”
The pain clinic had locations in Broward and Palm
Beach County. He also owned Pacific Pharmacy in Miami, Florida where the
majority of the prescriptions written by American Pain Management were filled.
As part of his guilty plea, Novick admitted to submitting approximately $1.2
million in fraudulent claims to Medicare.
The claims were for pain management services that
were purported to be rendered by a doctor who worked at American Pain
Management. However, Novick was aware that the claims were fraudulent and not
eligible for reimbursement. In addition, he admitted to disguising his
ownership of Pacific Pharmacy by falsely naming a relative as its owner in
order to continue dispensing controlled substances.
The admission of deception, says the DoJ, came as a
response to legislation passed by the Florida Legislature that prohibited pain
clinics from dispensing controlled substances directly from the clinic. Novick
also had concerns about federal anti-kickback laws and admitted that he knew
the doctor at American Pain Management was prescribing controlled substances at
inappropriately high levels. As well, he knew the drugs had not been prescribed
for legitimate medical purposes.
“In fact, Novick knew the doctor would sign
prescriptions for patients without conducting a visit with the patient,” reads
the DoJ report.
If so, please don’t hesitate to contact the Allegiant Experts team to find out how our clinical expertise may help your case. Give us a call at 407-217-5831 or email us at info@allegiantexperts.com.
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