Fort Worth, Texas-based physician assistant Ray Shoulders has been charged with healthcare fraud after allegedly injecting amniotic fluid into patients' joints in an attempt at pain management.
Mr. Shoulders, 36, also allegedly submitted $788,000 and received $614,000 in reimbursements from Medicare for the injections as an "off-label attempt to relieve joint pain," according to a July 20 Justice Department news release.
He primarily used a product called "Cell Genuity," for which Medicare would not reimburse. In August 2020, Mr. Shoulders allegedly found an amniotic product that Medicare would reimburse, and he billed for this more expensive product while injecting patients with the cheaper Cell Genuity.
The pain clinic allegedly profited around $1,200 per cubic centimeter of Cell Genuity injected. From August to October 2020, it received around $400,000 in reimbursements and Mr. Shoulders received a cut of more than $200,000.