Two people have been charged in federal court with illegally distributing hydrocodone from a Dallas pain management clinic and counterfeiting corticosteroid injections, according to a news release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Texas.
Desi Baroga and Deno Baroga, 51-year-old Dallas doctors, were each charged on November 14 with one count of conspiracy to commit health care fraud, five counts of health care fraud, and one count of unlawful distribution of a controlled substance. It was done. Go to news release. They were arrested on November 16 and made their first court appearance two days later.
The Justice Department said Degi and Deno Baroga prescribed high doses of hydrocodone, oxycodone and morphine to patients who came in once a month for “short visits” to fill prescriptions. Federal authorities say two doctors fraudulently billed patients’ insurance companies for administering dozens of corticosteroid injections during appointments.
In fact, they have received few if any shots, according to the news release. In reality, the doctor places a needle into the patient’s body, mimicking an injection, without actually piercing the skin. Doctors rarely gave injections, but usually only in small doses.
The doctors also created false medical records that falsely stated they administered more than 80 injections to patients in one day, according to the Department of Justice. Health insurance companies were billed by doctors for more than $50 million, and the doctors paid about $12 million for fraudulent services.
If convicted on all charges, the two doctors could each face up to 70 years in federal prison, the Justice Department said in a news release. Up to 10 years on a single charge.
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