A Texas orthopedic surgeon was sentenced to 8.5 years in federal prison on Tuesday for his involvement in a $145 million health-care fraud scheme that targeted injured federal workers and government insurance programs. According to the United States Department of Justice, Dr. Michael Taba, 61, of McKinney, Texas, was sentenced to 102 months in prison and forced to pay more than $13 million in restitution for conspiracy and health care fraud convictions.
Prosecutors said the sentence underscores the seriousness of health-care fraud linked to government benefit programs, as well as continued attempts to collect taxpayer funds and protect patients. About two and a half years have passed since a federal jury in the Northern District of Texas found Taba guilty.
The evidence at trial revealed that Taba accepted bribes and kickbacks from drugstore owners in exchange for dispensing medically unnecessary pricey compound creams and billed the Department of Labor’s Office of Workers’ Compensation Programs (DOL-OWCP) and insurers. These creams were prepared at a low cost but billed at up to $16,000 per prescription, and patients claimed they were ineffective or caused side effects.
Between May 2014 and March 2017, three pharmacies in the Fort Worth and Arlington areas invoiced more than $145 million to DOL-OWCP and Blue Cross Blue Shield for prescriptions linked to Taba and others and received more than $90 million in reimbursement.
“This sentence sends a strong message to those who would defraud our federal health-care programs for personal gain,” according to a Justice Department statement.
The prosecution demonstrates the federal government’s increased emphasis on combatting compounded pharmaceutical fraud schemes and ensuring the integrity of workers’ compensation and other benefit programs.
A restitution order and other financial judgments are likely to be implemented as part of the punishment. There have been no public details released regarding appeals or payment deadlines. What happens next is expected to involve civil recovery efforts based on the scheme’s proceeds.