Massachusetts Surgeon Settles for $200,000 Amid Accusations of Partaking in Kickback Scheme
A Massachusetts surgeon has agreed to cough up $200,000 to settle claims he was part of a kickback scheme, by receiving freebies from a medical device company in exchange for using their products on his patients, including those covered by Medicare and Medicaid, official sources revealed.
Dr. Tony Tannoury, from Andover, was allegedly entangled in a deal with DePuy Synthes, scoring free products for his spine surgeries abroad, including in Saudi Arabia, Lebanon, and Qatar, according to a settlement the company with its headquarters in Raynham, Massachusetts had already been fined $9.75 million earlier this year, related to their role in the scheme.
In a statement obtained by the Department of Justice, Tannoury "admits, acknowledges, and accepts responsibility for the facts underlying the government's allegations," having never paid for the said products which he also used in surgeries back in Boston, spanning from July 2016 through February 2018.
Allegedly violating both the Anti-Kickback Statute and the False Claims Act, Tannoury has found himself in hot water as the AKS seeks to prevent such actions that may sway medical professionals away from making decisions in the sole interest of their patients while this kind of corruption can adversely affect the integrity of medical judgements and creates a skewed level-playing field.
"Physicians violate the law when they solicit and receive free goods from medical device manufacturers," Acting United States Attorney Joshua S. Levy remarked. "Unlawful kickbacks like these can corrupt medical judgment and creates an uneven playing field for companies that play by the rules," Levy stated, emphasizing the settlement's exemplary intent.
Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigations in Boston, Jodi Cohen, added, "Today’s settlement resolves allegations that Dr. Tony Tannoury solicited and received illegal kickbacks, and in doing so, used his patients as pawns." Cohen pointed out that healthcare fraud bears not only substantial costs but also serious consequences, stressing the FBI's commitment to aggressively tackle such fraudulent behavior.
The investigation was jointly conducted by the Affirmative Civil Enforcement Unit's Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jessica J. Weber and Andrew A. Caffrey, III, along with Massachusetts Assistant Attorney General Kevin Lownds, marking a collaborative effort to uphold the integrity of the healthcare system against corrupt practices.
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