Houston (WKRC) – A rheumatologist was surprised to fraud Medicare and Medicaid in wrong, by performing chemotherapy on healthy patients and prescribing unnecessary drugs that caused damage, among others.
Jorge Zamora-Quezada, 68, was sentenced to 10 years in prison and three years of supervised release for orchestrated a health care fraud program involving more than $ 118 million in false complaints. The regime led insurers to pay more than $ 28 million after Zamora-Quezada falsely diagnosed patients with chronic diseases to charge unnecessary tests and treatments, according to the Ministry of Justice.
After a 25-day trial, Zamora-Quezada was found guilty of a conspiracy chief to commit health care fraud, seven Health Care Fraud Heads and a conspiracy chief to hinder justice. In addition to his prison sentence, he was sentenced to losing $ 28,2454, including 13 real estate properties, a jet and a marsatirismo.
The evidence presented during the trial revealed that Zamora-Quezada diagnosed patients with rheumatoid arthritis and administered toxic drugs to fraud Medicare, Medicaid, Tricare and Blue Cross Blue Shield. Its fraudulent diagnoses led patients to believe that they had an incurable and permanent condition requiring regular treatment in its offices.
Zamora-Quezada then administered unnecessary and ordered treatments unnecessary tests, including injections, infusions, X-rays, MRI and other procedures, all with potentially harmful side effects.
“Dr. Zamora-Quezada financed his luxurious lifestyle for two decades by traumatizing his patients, abusing his employees, lying to insurers and stealing taxpayers’ money,” said Matthew R. Galeotti, head of the criminal division of the Ministry of Justice. “His depraved conduct represents a deep betrayal of confidence in vulnerable patients who depend on the care and integrity of their doctor.”
The special agent of the San Antonio field office of the FBI in charge Aaron Tapp added: “This case was not only a concern to us because of the financial loss – the physical and emotional damage suffered by the patients and their families were alarming and deep.”
The testimony to the test revealed that other rheumatologists of the Rio Grande Valley saw hundreds of patients previously diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis by Zamora-Quezada who did not have the condition. A doctor noted that for “most”, it was “obvious that the patient had no rheumatoid arthritis”.
Zamora-Quezada’s false diagnoses and powerful drugs have caused debilitating side effects, including strokes, jaw necrosis, hair loss, liver damage and serious pain. A patient testified, “being constantly in bed and being unable to get up from bed alone, and to be pumped with drugs, I did not have the impression that my life had a meaning.”