This week, it was announced that 60-year-old Andrew M. Berkowitz of Huntington Valley, Pennsylvania had been charged with 19 counts of health care fraud and 23 counts of distributing oxycodone outside the course of professional practice and without a legitimate medical purpose.
The indictment explains that Berkowitz operated A+ Pain Management in Philadelphia. He is accused of fraudulently billing insurers for medically unnecessary procedures and prescription drugs. Sometimes, he billed insurers for treatments that were not provided at all.
Regardless of the patient’s complaint, A+ patients received a goodie bag for their visit. Those bags were filled with prescription drugs, such as topical analgesics, muscle relaxers, and Schedule IV controlled substances. For those bags, he submitted pharmacy claims through his company, Bucks Philadelphia Medical Care Group.
Berkowitz is also accused of prescribing Oxycodone to pill-seeking patients. From 2015 through 2018, Berkowitz allegedly acquired roughly $3.2 million in fraudulent proceeds from the goodie bag scheme. Further details can be found here.