Podiatry Malpractice Lawyer & Attorney : Michael A. Quinn Law Firm : Surgery, Amputation, Podiatric Medicine : New Jersey

A St. Louis County podiatrist, Dr. Denise Hardy, 45,  recently plead guilty to a health care fraud charge in federal court in St. Louis and has admitted to over billing Medicaid and Medicare for unnecessary treatments.

Prosecutors said that Denise Hardy, D.P.M.,  lied on treatment notes from 2000 through 2005 so that Medicaid and Medicare would pay for foot care that would not otherwise have been reimbursed.

Dr. Hardy worked for South St. Louis Orthopedic Group between 1998  and 2005 and provided podiatric services at their office as well as at nursing homes, such as Lafayette Habilitation and at senior service centers at St. Anthonys Medical Center and  St. Alexius Hospital.

Denise Hardy was paid a salary of  $55,000  plus between 50 to 60 percent of the revenue she had billed each month over $12,000.
 

Source: St. Louis Post Dispatch 3-13-2009

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West Peoria podiatrist was sentenced Friday to one year in federal prison for bilking Medicare out of thousands of dollars over the past decade by writing bills for medical procedures he didn't perform. Dr. Ernest Nwani, 57, also was ordered to repay $109,127 to Medicare and Medicaid for the bogus operations, some 400 of them in all.

Nwani, the sole medical provider for Footworld Medical Center, which he operated out of his house, admitted he defrauded the government by billing for services he didn't provide or didn't provide to the level that he charged Medicare. A company hired by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services to combat fraud last year noted irregular billing practices by the doctor. An investigation revealed patients did not have procedures or even surgeries for which Nwani had billed Medicare.

From 2002 until 2006, Nwani submitted claims, which Medicare paid, for 539 surgical procedures of various types regarding 442 patients and claims for the permanent removal of 1,082 toenails from 394 patients, according to court records. Medicare paid $171,760 for the surgeries and $100,180 for the toenail removals. Thirty-three patients were interviewed and of those, "none of the surgeries billed for these 33 patients and for which Medicare paid, could be verified as having been performed," court records state.

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It is always desirable to research the background of any professional that you may consider engaging for professional services.  In New Jersey, physicians and podiatrists are regulated and governed by the New Jersey State Board of Medical Examiners. At their website you can research and obtain information about physicians and podiatrist who may have been disciplined by the Board.  While not always an indicator of the competence of the practitioner, it is often the case where a significant history can serve as barometer of the ethical and medical aptitude of the provider.   

For example, in the medical  license of podiatrist Dr. Ming Tung, D.P.M. was recently revoked  as a result of fraudulent insurance activity.  The FINAL ORDER OF REVOCATION OF LICENSE was filed September 26, 2007 and viewable at the site. This matter was presented to the Board by way of settlement of an investigation into the conduct of the Doctor. He was the subject of a federal civil and criminal investigation involving fraud on the Medicare Program. Dr. Tung agreed to pay $868,313.38 in settlement of civil claims alleged by the Department of Justice and the Office of Inspector General of the Department of Health and Human Services. He also pled guilty to a one Count Information, in the District Court of New Jersey. Dr. Tung in a plea agreement agreed to make restitution in the amount of $350,000.00.

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