Las Vegas physician found liable of Medicare fraud

By Mary Manning

Thursday, Feb. 19, 2009 | 4:12 p.m.

A federal jury today found 57-year-old Las Vegas anesthesiologist Eugene Chen liable of committing federal health care fraud for submitting more than 3,500 false or fraudulent claims to the U.S. government.

Chen submitted the claims between 1999 and 2006 for consultation services not requested or provided, said Greg Brower, U.S. Attorney for Nevada.

Chen, whose practice is at 3230 E. Flamingo Road, was charged in a civil complaint with violating the federal False Claims Act, Brower said. The trial began on Feb. 10 and was presided over by U.S. District Judge Philip Pro.

"The Department of Justice in Nevada will continue to pursue physicians who present false claims to the government," Brower said in a statement. "Anyone found violating the False Claims Act faces triple the proven damages as well as civil penalties and costs of prosecution."

A hearing has been set on April 14 to determine the amount of the civil penalties to be awarded to the government, which is requesting between $1 million and $2 million.

The allegations against Chen are related to Part B of the Medicare program, which is a voluntary subscription program of supplementary insurance covering items and services other than hospitalization. Medicare Part B covers only services and procedures that have been determined to be medically reasonable and necessary.

Physicians are permitted to present claims under Medicare Part B for consultations that are deemed appropriate and based on the level of complexity and amount of time spent with each patient. Physicians were permitted to bill for services in an amount set by a physician fee schedule.

The jury found that Chen submitted claims for consultation services that he had not been requested to perform, and in some cases, had not performed. Relying on Chen's false certifications on the claim forms, Medicare paid reimbursements to the doctor of about $421,000.

The case was investigated by the Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General and litigated by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Roger W. Wenthe and Rob Edelman.