The former operator of two medical clinics in New York City has pleaded guilty to his role in a scheme to defraud government payers and illegally sell prescriptions for millions of pain pills, according to a news release from the New York City Special Narcotics Prosecutor's office.
Lazar Feygin, MD, was one of 13 people charged in April 2017 for their alleged participation in a fraud scheme that involved illegally billing Medicare and Medicaid for unnecessary medical tests and providing patients oxycodone prescriptions for no legitimate medical purpose. He recently pleaded guilty to 16 felonies for his involvement.
Dr. Feygin admitted to directing clinicians and staff at his two clinics to subject patients to medically unnecessary tests that were then billed to Medicare and Medicaid. Dr. Feygin and his staff provided patients with prescriptions for oxycodone to get them to submit to the unnecessary tests. He admitted to providing oxycodone prescriptions to people he knew were reselling the pills.
Between early 2012 and early 2017, Dr. Feygin and his staff prescribed more than 3.7 million oxycodone pills and received more than $16 million in reimbursements from Medicare and Medicaid.
Dr. Feygin is scheduled to be sentenced April 23. Under the terms of his plea deal, he is expected to receive a five-year prison sentence and forfeit his medical license.
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