Here are eight lawsuits involving anesthesiologists that Becker's has reported on since Jan. 1:
1. Narendra Raval, a former anesthesiologist at Bakersfield, Calif.-based Mercy Hospital, has surrendered his license after the California Medical Board accused him of administering the wrong medicine to a pregnant woman in labor, which left her parapalegic for one year.
2. Randy Rosen, MD, a former anesthesiologist in Beverly Hills, Calif., was sentenced to 10 years in prison for stealing nearly $38 million through an insurance fraud scheme that paid patients at sober living homes to undergo medically unnecessary testing and surgeries.
3. David Jankowski, a Bingham Farms, Mich.-based anesthesiologist, was convicted of running a $35 million pill mill. According to evidence presented at trial, Mr. Jankowski wrote medically unnecessary prescriptions for pain pills, including oxycontin, oxycodone, morphine, hydrocodone and Xanax, the Free Press reported.
4. A patient of a St. Paul, Minn.-based anesthesiologist and pain clinic is suing both, blaming them for his opioid dependence. Michael Faulhaber allegedly began seeing Samuel Yue, MD, and the Minnesota Pain Center after a workplace incident that left him in chronic pain. Dr. Yue allegedly prescribed Mr. Faulhaber "escalating levels of opioids" that left him physically addicted.
5. Jon Paul Dadaian, MD, an Elmwood, N.J.-based anesthesiologist, admitted to using his medical license to buy prescription oncology medication to sell for profit. He and two individuals who owned and operated businesses that were distributors of prescription drugs were able to get the drugs from pharmaceutical manufacturers' authorized distributors and sell them.
6. Hawaii anesthesiologist Rudolph Puana, MD, was convicted on 38 counts of opioid distribution. He distributed more than 7,810 oxycodone 30mg pills to his friends so they could sell it to buy cocaine and pay for private school tuition.
7. Tampa, Fla., anesthesiologist and pain management physician Zachary Bird, MD, was sentenced to 24 months in federal prison. Dr. Bird operated the now-shuttered Physicians Wellness and Pain Specialists in Tampa from May 2014 to June 2018. He structured $481,526 in cash deposits to evade bank reporting requirements.
8. A LaVale, Md.-based anesthesiologist Melvin Gonzaga, MD, and his pain management practice will pay $980,000 to resolve allegations they submitted false claims for medically unnecessary urine tests.