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Washington-based Health Systems Allegedly Endangered Patients and Fraudulently Billed for Procedures
1/30/2024 12:00 PM EDT
The US and the State of Washington filed a complaint in a federal court against MultiCare Health System, which owns and operates MultiCare Deaconess Hospital and MultiCare Rockwood Clinic in Spokane. The complaint alleges that MultiCare knowingly endangered patient safety and falsely and fraudulently billed federal healthcare programs for spinal surgery procedures performed at Deaconess between 2019 and 2021 by Jason Dreyer, a former neurosurgeon. Between 2013 and 2019, Dr. Dreyer practiced at Providence St. Mary’s Medical Center in Walla Walla, Washington, a hospital owned and operated by Providence Health & Services. In 2019, amidst allegations that he was performing medically unnecessary surgeries, harming patients, and falsifying diagnoses, Providence permitted Dr. Dreyer to resign. The complaint alleges that during MultiCare’s hiring process, it became aware of concerns about Dr. Dreyer and his surgical judgment from his time at Providence, but, recognizing that he was a “workhorse” made the decision to hire him and allow him to begin seeing patients and performing surgery at Deaconess Hospital in July 2019. The VA OIG, Department of Health and Human Services OIG, Office of Personnel Management OIG, the Defense Criminal Investigative Service, and the State of Washington Attorney General’s Medicaid Fraud Control Division investigated this case.
Surgical Sales Representatives Pleaded Guilty to Conspiracy to Commit Bribery and Honest Services Wire Fraud Against the VA
1/30/2024 1:00 PM EDT
Eric S. Smith, of Bristol, Virginia, and Landon Chester, of Johnson City, Tennessee, entered guilty pleas to conspiracy to commit bribery and honest services wire fraud. Chester and Smith, both surgical sales representatives for an independent distributor of a nationwide orthopedic company, acquired manufactured replacement joints and products used during surgeries and sold the products to the VA at inflated prices or when not necessary, resulting in losses to the VA more than $850,000. Chester and Smith agreed that they conspired and paid cash bribes of more than $80,000 to two VA Medical Center employees (indicted separately) for their agreement to commit, collude, and aid in the fraud against the VA. Smith and Chester both face a term of up to five years in federal prison, $250,000 in fines, and supervised release of three years. Under their written plea agreements, both must also pay restitution and have agreed to forfeit seized bank accounts totaling over $156,000. The VA OIG, the GSA OIG, and the Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation investigated this case.
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