DALLAS — Two doctors in Dallas were arrested last week and charged in an alleged fraud scheme resulting in millions of dollars, according to the Department of Justice.
The U.S. Attorney's Office from the Northern District of Texas published a news release about the case on Monday.
The release says Drs. Desi Barroga and Deno Barroga were indicted on Nov. 14 on seven counts each: one for conspiracy to commit healthcare fraud, five counts of healthcare fraud, and one count of unlawful distribution of a controlled substance.
According to the U.S. Attorney's Office, the two were arrested last Thursday and made their first court appearances on Friday morning.
Officials said the suspects run a pain management clinic in Dallas where patients had short monthly visits and were prescribed "high doses of hydrocodone, oxycodone, and morphine," the release said.
The clinic was not named in the news release.
The two suspects would allegedly send fake claims to their patients' insurance companies saying their patients received multiple corticosteroid injections, when they really received few injections or none, officials said.
According to the news release, the doctors usually mimicked the injection by place the needle on the patients' bodies without piercing their skin. If the patients actually received an injection, their dosages were allegedly smaller than the suspects claimed, the release said.
In the release, the U.S. Attorney's Office said, "In many instances the defendants falsely represented that they provided over eighty injections to the patient on a single date of service. Fake medical records were also created to falsely reflect that injections were performed."
The suspects allegedly billed their patients' insurance companies over $50 million and were paid $12 million in the alleged scheme, the release said.
If they're convicted, each doctor could face up to 40 years in prison: 10 for fraud, 10 for conspiracy to commit fraud, and 20 for unlawful distribution on a controlled substance.
They would also have to pay back any money tied to the scheme, officials said.
Other local news:
