Indian-origin doctor to pay $14 million to settle US charges against him; performed unnecessary procedure

An Indian-American doctor in Georgia has agreed to pay $15 million to settle health care fraud charges against him.

Jitesh Patel, an Indian-born urologist, must pay $14 million to settle charges that he defrauded health care plans by performing unnecessary surgeries on patients. An employee at Patel Advanced Urology in Georgia filed a whistleblower complaint alleging they were performing procedures and tests that were not medically necessary. Another former employee also became a whistleblower and testified that Advanced Urology “aimed to maximize the income of Dr. Patel and others by performing medically unnecessary procedures and tests,” according to court documents. They implanted some devices into patients without determining whether the patients would benefit from the devices; they performed unnecessary tests that included anesthetizing the patients; and they ordered thousands of unnecessary ultrasound exams, requiring each new patient to undergo one exam that is rarely used in urological practices. They also paid for some procedures that were never performed, the charges allege. The case was investigated by the U.S. Attorney’s Office, the FBI, the Department of Health and Human Services and several other agencies. “When doctors claim payment for medically unnecessary procedures or services that were never performed, they commit fraud,” said U.S. Attorney Theodore S. Hertzberg. “Our office will not tolerate patient abuse or misuse of government funds, and we will enforce the False Claims Act to hold wrongdoers accountable.”Under the False Claims Act, private citizens can sue for false claims on behalf of the United States and share in any compensation the government receives. Relators will receive a total of $2,940,000 from the settlement. The claims resolved by the settlement are allegations only and liability has not been established.The lawsuit does not disclose whether the unnecessary procedures caused any health problems for the patients. Dr. Patel is considered a leader in the field and has received multiple awards including Atlanta’s Top Doctors, Top 40, and Under 40. He studied medicine at Temple University School of Medicine.