Seven out of nine defendants were convicted April 9 for their roles in a bribery and kickback scheme involving now-defunct Forest Park Medical Center in Dallas, according to The Dallas Morning News.
The federal trial, which kicked off in February, centered on bribes and kickbacks Forest Park Medical Center allegedly paid to surgeons to steer surgeries to the hospital. The scheme allegedly involved Forest Park Medical Center officials making $40 million in illegal payouts to surgeons in exchange for referrals. The surgeons used the funds to market their practices.
The seven defendants convicted in the case, including four surgeons, were found guilty of conspiracy to pay and receive healthcare bribes and kickbacks, according to the report.
Several of the surgeons charged in the case denied any wrongdoing. They claimed healthcare attorneys told them the marketing agreements they entered into, which were at the center of the kickback allegations, were legal.
Lawyers representing some of the defendants in the case told The Dallas Morning News they plan to appeal.
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