Farid Fata, M.D., 49, of Oakland Township, Michigan, pleaded guilty today before U.S. District Judge Paul D. Borman of the Eastern District of Michigan to 13 counts of health care fraud, one count of conspiracy to pay or receive kickbacks and two counts of money laundering. At his sentencing, scheduled for Feb. 23, 2014, Fata faces a statutory maximum of 175 years in prison…
Fata admitted that he is a licensed medical doctor who owned and operated a cancer treatment clinic, Michigan Hematology Oncology, P.C. (MHO), which had locations in Rochester Hills, Clarkston, Bloomfield Hills, Lapeer, Sterling Heights, Troy and Oak Park, Michigan. He also owned a diagnostic testing facility, United Diagnostics PLLC, located in Rochester Hills, Michigan.
In his guilty plea today, Fata admitted to prescribing and administering aggressive chemotherapy, cancer treatments, intravenous iron and other infusion therapies to patients who did not need them in order to increase his billings to the Medicare program and other insurance companies. Fata then submitted fraudulent claims to Medicare and other insurers for these unnecessary treatments.
Fata submitted approximately $225 million in claims to Medicare between August 2007 and July 2013, of which approximately $109 million was for chemotherapy and other cancer treatments. Medicare paid over $91 million to Fata, of which over $48 million was for chemotherapy and other cancer treatments.
Fata also admitted to soliciting kickbacks from Guardian Angel Hospice and Guardian Angel Home Health Care in exchange for his referral of patients to those facilities.
Fata further admitted to using the proceeds of the health care fraud at his medical practice, MHO, to promote the carrying on of additional health care fraud at United Diagnostics, where he administered unnecessary and expensive PET (positron emission tomography) scans for which he billed a private insurer.