Indian-origin Neurosurgeon in US fined over $2 mn for medicare fraud involving false claims

Houston: A 53-year-old Indian-origin neurosurgeon in the United States, Dr Rajesh Bindal, has been fined more than USD 2 million for defrauding Medicare and the Federal Employees Health Benefits Program (FEHBP). Dr Bindal, based in the Houston area, was ordered to pay USD 2,095,946 after being found guilty of falsely billing for surgeries that were never performed.

According to the PTI report, Dr Rajesh Bindal from the Houston area was fined USD 2,095,946 after being accused of defrauding Medicare and the Federal Employees Health Benefits Program (FEHBP), US Attorney Alamdar S Hamdani said on Wednesday.

According to federal investigators, Bindal billed for invasive procedures typically requiring operating rooms, yet no such surgeries were conducted. Instead, the devices were merely taped behind patients' ears, often falling off within days. 

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In some cases, the procedures were performed not by Bindal himself but by a device sales representative or a physician assistant at his clinic, Texas Spine & Neurosurgery Center P.A., rather than in a proper surgical setting.

"A neurosurgeon like Dr Bindal knows the difference between real surgery and sticking a device behind someone's ear," said US Attorney Hamdani. "Despite being among the highest-paid specialists in medicine, he chose personal greed over integrity and patient care", news agency PTI reported.

"This type of fraud not only wastes taxpayer dollars but undermines trust in healthcare providers and critical programs like Medicare. Dr Bindal's actions deceived both the system and vulnerable patients," said Jason E Meadows, Special Agent in Charge of the Department of Health and Human Services - Office of Inspector General.

Medical Dialogues team had earlier reported that the menace of touts defrauding patients by promising faster and better treatment at Government hospitals is spreading like wildfire in Odisha. Thirteen people were arrested by Khandagiri police from the campus of AIIMS-Bhubaneswar for allegedly taking money from gullible patients and their families by promising faster treatment.

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