A Massachusetts-based orthopedic surgeon was convicted by a federal jury for his role in an upcoding scheme.
Olarewaju Oladipo, MD, 60, of Canton, was convicted on 10 counts of healthcare fraud, according to a Dec. 14 Justice Department news release.
The Justice Department said that from January 2016 through December 2019, Dr. Oladipo devised and executed an upcoding scheme in which he billed for more complex services than provided. He frequently billed for more than 60 patients per day and sometimes more than 90. Many, if not most, of the patient visits on such days could have only lasted five minutes or less, but he used billing codes that typically corresponded to visits of 15, 25, 30, or even 45 minutes.
Dr. Oladipo also ensured a high flow of patients to his practice by prescribing opioids at a rate that made him one of the top prescribers in Massachusetts, according to the release. He is scheduled to be sentenced March 12, 2024.