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Owners of Medical Clinics Plead Guilty To Conspiracy To Commit Health Care Fraud
< < Back toOwners of the Advanced Family Medical Center and Watkins-Tsai Imaging pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit health care fraud after admitting they improperly charged government insurance programs for medically unnecessary procedures.
Peter Tsai, 45, owner of Advanced Family Medical Center, his father and mother, Tahsiung Tsai, 73, and Ruey Tsai, 68, owners of Watkins-Tsai Imaging, along with Peter Tsai's cousin, Wei Lih Sheih, 42, a worker at both clinics, admitted to the conspiracy to defraud health care benefit programs including Medicaid, Medicare, and Tri-Care between 2004 and 2013.
According to court documents, both Advanced Family Medical Center and Watkins-Tsai Imaging operated out of the same building in Coal Grove, Ohio. It was here where the conspirators performed numerous unnecessary CT procedures including multiple scans of one body part on a single patient. One patient received 108 CT-related procedures in a 40-month period.
The defendants were also charged with fraudulently inflating their bills to Medicare and Medicaid. Peter Tsai illegally imported injections from other countries and billed government insurance programs. He pleaded guilty to one count of illegal importing of merchandise.
As part of the plea agreement, Ruey Tsai and Tahsiung Tsai agreed to repay $999,000, which will be credited toward any restitution ordered.
A sentencing date has not been set.