doctor pays $720,000 and agrees to be barred from federal health care programs for 15 years for violating misrepresentation law | USAO-WDKY

Louisville, KY – Mangesh Kanvinde, MD, of Batavia, Ohio, has paid $720,000 and agreed to be barred from federal health care programs for fifteen years for his role in a program to order durable medical equipment and unnecessary genetic testing. The EMR he ordered included braces commonly used for knees, ankles, shoulders, back and neck. The genetic tests he ordered included testing for inherited genetic variants associated with a high to moderate risk of cancer. As part of the civil settlement with the United States, Dr. Kanvinde also agreed to make additional payments based on his income over the next five years.

The United States alleged that between December 5, 2016 and June 20, 2019, Dr. Kanvinde violated the False Claims Act by knowingly conspiring to submit and causing the submission of false claims to Medicare. The United States alleged that Dr. Kanvinde entered into improper financial arrangements with temporary physician recruitment agencies and telehealth companies to provide EMR and genetic testing items and services and that he received bribes illegal wine purchases in exchange for ordering medically unnecessary EMR and genetic tests and services. The United States further alleged that Dr. Kanvinde had no doctor-patient relationship with Medicare beneficiaries, often did not speak with beneficiaries, and knew that the goods and services he prescribed were not medically required.

“We will continue to vigorously pursue medical providers who violate federal law by engaging in unlawful schemes that include filing false Medicare claims,” said Michael A. Bennett, U.S. Attorney for the Western District. from Kentucky. “I commend HHS-OIG and AUSAs Malloy and Weyand for their outstanding efforts in this matter.”

“Physicians who use their position of trust in schemes to submit false claims to Medicare for their own financial gain undermine the integrity of federal taxpayer-funded health care programs and public confidence in the health care profession. said Special Agent in Charge Tamala E. Miles with the Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General (HHS-OIG). “Our agency is committed to working with our law enforcement partners to ensure bad actors are held accountable for their actions.”

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jessica RC Malloy and A. Matthew Weyand handled the case.

###