An oncologist from Michigan was sentenced to 45 years of imprisonment for giving cancer treatments to patients who did not have the disease, undertreating those who truly have cancer and recommending unnecessary medical procedures to his patients. The sentence was served in court on Friday, July 10, with some of the fraudulent doctor's patients present.
Dr. Farid Fata pleaded guilty to the accusation thrown at him. He said that he told his patients that they had a type of cancer called multiple myeloma and that treatment was immediately necessary. His cases include 13 counts of Medicare deceit, one count of conspiracy to receive kickbacks and two counts of money laundering. According to the prosecutors, about 553 patients were victimized by Fata.
A former employee from Dr. Farid Fata's Crittenton Cancer Center in Rochester Hills, Michigan named George Karadsheh served as the whistleblower for this case. In 2013, he suspected that something was not right when he noticed a significant increase of staff resignation. When he spoke to one doctor, who was also working at Fata's office, he found that the 50-year-old "world-renowned" oncologist had been giving chemotherapeutic drugs even in patients who do not need it. Karadsheh found it hard to believe at first but when he confirmed the criminal act, he went to speak with the US Department of Justice in 2013, and in August of the same year, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) arrested Fata in his clinic.
"I have never seen a case anywhere close to this," Barbara McQuade, the U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Michigan told ABC News. "We have a lot of cases involving Medicare fraud here where doctors submit fraudulent billings but those cases really are all about money. This case was unique in that it was really about patient harm and really harm that was unimaginable."
Before the sentence was announced, Fata faced the people present inside the courtroom and apologized. According to him, his quest for power was self-destructive and he admitted that he let sin come to get him. He violated the Hippocratic oath and at this point, he does not know how to heal the wound or express how shameful he is.
The victims of Fata will be given a chance to file for claims and possibly be refunded of the money they used for the unnecessary treatments.
Fata is a naturalized US citizen, who originally came from Lebanon. He is married with three kids. His family is said to have moved out of the country, leaving him alone as he faced his sentence.
Photo: Phil and Pam Gradwell (to be) | Flickr
