Indian-origin doctor sentenced to 14 years in prison for medical fraud in US

A 48-year-old Indian-origin doctor has been sentenced to 14 years in prison for health care fraud which involved illegal opioid distribution and money laundering, the US Department of Justice said. While the Pennsylvania doctor claimed his actions were motivated by compassion, the court found he did so only to make a profit. Neil K Anand, prescribed over 20,000 oxycodone tablets to just nine patients. Even after the investigation began, he attempted to conceal $1.2 million by transferring it to a family member's account.

Anand of Bensalem was sentenced to 168 months in prison and ordered to pay over $2 million (approximately Rs 17.6 crore) in restitution, along with more than $2 million in forfeiture.

Restitution compensates victims for financial losses. In this case, he cheated health insurance programmes like Medicare and private insurers, while forfeiture allows the government to seize assets gained through criminal activity.

Earlier in April, he was convicted on multiple federal charges, including conspiracy to commit health care fraud and wire fraud, health care fraud, unlawful distribution of controlled substances, and money laundering.

He conspired to submit false and fraudulent claims to health plans provided by Medicare, the US Office of Personnel Management (OPM), Independence Blue Cross (IBC), and Anthem, for "Goody Bags" of medically unnecessary prescription medications, which were dispensed to patients by in-house pharmacies owned by Anand, the US Department of Justice said in a statement issued on Tuesday.

To entice patients to take the unwanted Goody Bags, Anand also conspired to distribute oxycodone outside the usual course of medical practice and without a legitimate medical purpose, it added.

In furtherance of the scheme, unlicensed medical interns used pre-signed blank prescriptions from Anand to issue controlled substances. Court records show Anand prescribed over 20,000 oxycodone tablets to just nine patients.

After learning that he was under investigation, Anand concealed the proceeds of the fraud by transferring approximately $1.2 million into an account in the name of a relative and for the benefit of a minor relative.

JUDGE: GREED, NOT CARE, FUELLED ANAND'S ACTIONS

Anand and his relatives told the court on Tuesday that his actions were rooted in compassion for his patients and had been wrongly portrayed as criminal—noting that he had devoted his life to caring for others, including treating victims of the 9/11 attacks in New York City in 2001, and later serving as a physician in the US Navy.

Anand said he sought to treat patients in "real, relentless, ravaging pain", and that he took actions out of mercy that were later described as malpractice, The Philadelphia Inquirer, a Pennsylvania-based newspaper reported.

"The law has spoken for now, but the deeper questions remain: What is healing? What is justice? Where's the line between mercy and misconduct?," Anand was quoted as saying by the newspaper.

US District Judge Chad F Kenney said he believed Anand had grown to be motivated by greed and illicit profits and not the needs of his patients, according to the report.

"For you, their pain was your gain," Kenney said. "You were not focused during this period on treating your patients," the judge added.

- Ends