Howard Goldstein, MD, an internist from Clayton, Mo., has been sentenced to five months imprisonment and ordered to pay $30,000 for making false statements about his questionable Medicare billing practices, according to a KSDK news report.
Dr. Goldstein was first suspected of questionable billing practices by his former employer SSM St. Charles (Mo.) Clinic Medical Group, who first audited his Medicare claims in 2007 and reported the documentation was "illegible and scant," according to the report.
Another peer review in 2009 found Dr. Goldstein's medical records and Medicare claims were questionable again. Soon after, SSM contacted the authorities. When questioned by FBI agents and the OIG about the false charges made to the Medicare program, Dr. Goldstein reportedly "minimized and mischaracterized concerns and problems that had been raised by his former employer," according to an earlier report. He later pled guilty to making false statements.
In a related civil settlement agreement, Dr. Goldstein has agreed to pay more than $830,000 and will be excluded from participation in the Medicare program for five years. SSM has also agreed to pay more than $865,000 for Dr. Goldstein's false Medicare claims, according to the report.
Read the news report about Dr. Howard Goldstein's sentence.
Read other coverage about physician fraud:
- Nevada Anesthesiologist to Pay $1.25 to Settle Healthcare Fraud Allegations
- Arizona Internist Settles Medicare Fraud Allegations, Will Pay $92K
- Michigan Physician Sentenced to Three Year Imprisonment for False Medicare Claims
Dr. Goldstein was first suspected of questionable billing practices by his former employer SSM St. Charles (Mo.) Clinic Medical Group, who first audited his Medicare claims in 2007 and reported the documentation was "illegible and scant," according to the report.
Another peer review in 2009 found Dr. Goldstein's medical records and Medicare claims were questionable again. Soon after, SSM contacted the authorities. When questioned by FBI agents and the OIG about the false charges made to the Medicare program, Dr. Goldstein reportedly "minimized and mischaracterized concerns and problems that had been raised by his former employer," according to an earlier report. He later pled guilty to making false statements.
In a related civil settlement agreement, Dr. Goldstein has agreed to pay more than $830,000 and will be excluded from participation in the Medicare program for five years. SSM has also agreed to pay more than $865,000 for Dr. Goldstein's false Medicare claims, according to the report.
Read the news report about Dr. Howard Goldstein's sentence.
Read other coverage about physician fraud:
- Nevada Anesthesiologist to Pay $1.25 to Settle Healthcare Fraud Allegations
- Arizona Internist Settles Medicare Fraud Allegations, Will Pay $92K
- Michigan Physician Sentenced to Three Year Imprisonment for False Medicare Claims