An optometrist based in Carlisle, Mass., was indicted for billing fraud during the height of the pandemic.
Frederick Wagner Jr., OD, is accused of billing for services he didn't provide to nursing home residents, including services provided to deceased former residents. Dr. Wagner billed for the services in 2020, but the nursing homes did not have records of his appearance at the facilities. At the time, the nursing homes kept strict guidelines and logs of who entered the buildings to prevent a COVID-19 outbreak.
Dr. Wagner billed MassHealth for more than $35,000 in services from March 2020 to Dec. 31, 2020, that the state alleges weren't provided. A grand jury issued a subpoena for Dr. Wagner's records, and he allegedly provided hundreds of false patient records.