A Chesapeake, Va. gynecologist has been convicted by a federal grand jury for manipulating his patients and defrauding Medicare, Medicaid, and private health insurance programs. (This guy was ambitious, not to mention evil.) Javaid Perwaiz was found guilty on 52 counts related to insurance fraud and falsely telling women they needed surgeries that were medically unnecessary.
More than 173 women have come forward since Perwaiz’s arrest stating that they received surgeries that were unwanted or that were determined medically unnecessary. These unnecessary surgeries included hysterectomies and tubal ligations. (This doctor violated these women and caused them irreversible suffering, all to satisfy his own greed.)
Dr. Perwaiz took advantage of the trust placed in him by his patients for his own financial gain. He billed both private and government insurance programs millions of dollars for medically unnecessary procedures. The same insurance programs were also billed hundreds of thousands of dollars for diagnostic procedures he never performed.
Additionally, Perwaiz violated the 30-day waiting period Virginia Medicaid requires for elective sterilizations. He would submit backdated forms to avoid having to wait the required number of days. Prosecutors also stated that Perwaiz would falsely tell patients that they needed irreversible hysterectomies to avoid cancer. (He deceived these women into agreeing to surgeries under the pretense they may be fighting for their lives.)
Perwaiz would also falsify records of pregnant patients and induce their labor early. He induced labor prior to the recommended gestational age, that minimizes risk to the mother and baby, so that he could ensure he would be reimbursed by Medicaid, Medicare, and other private insurers for the deliveries. (He put the lives of innocent babies at risk so that he could make a few extra bucks.)
Despite pleading “not guilty,” Pervaiz was found guilty by a federal jury for insurance fraud and performing medically unnecessary surgeries on patients. (Even a blind person could see how despicable Perwaiz’s actions were.)
When sentenced for healthcare fraud, Perwaiz could face up to 465 years in prison. Perwaiz’s lawyer, Lawrence Woodward Jr., asked the court to take into consideration emails from previous patients who described Perwaiz’s “fine qualities” and “how he helped them.” (Maybe they should ask to hear from the patients he mutilated, then see what they think.)
This is not this fraudster’s first time facing prison time. Perwaiz was sentenced in 1996 to five years probation and ordered to pay more than $100,000 in fines and restitution after pleading guilty to two counts of tax fraud. (He should’ve learned his lesson the first time around.)
If you suspect a healthcare professional of Medicaid or Medicare fraud, please report it by calling 1-800-447-8477 or via email at HHSTips@oig.hhs.gov.
Today’s Fraud of the Day comes from an article, “Virginia gynecologist convicted of fraud, unneeded surgeries,” published by The Associated Press on November 9, 2020.
CHESAPEAKE, Va. (AP) – A Virginia gynecologist has been found guilty of submitting false insurance claims after performing what authorities described as unnecessary surgeries on women, including hysterectomies and tubal ligations.
The Justice Department said in a statement Monday that a federal jury convicted Javaid Perwaiz on 52 counts related to his defrauding of health insurance programs and falsely telling his patients they needed surgeries.
