A doctor admitted to fraudulently putting patients through unnecessary chemotherapy that cost Medicare $225 million.
Dr. Farid Fata, who owns and operates Michigan Hematology Oncology, a cancer treatment practice with seven locations throughout Michigan, as well as a diagnostic testing facility, misdiagnosed patients with cancer so he can make extra [false] claims to Medicare.
He pleaded guilty to 16 charges when he appeared in court on Tuesday.
One of Fata's patients was given 155 doses of chemotherapy before the doctor was caught, reports Medical Daily. The patient never had cancer.
"At a time when they are most vulnerable and fearful, cancer patients put their lives in the hands of doctors and endure risky treatments at their recommendation," DOJ Assistant Attorney General Leslie Caldwell tells Daily Caller. "Dr. Fata today admitted he put greed before the health and safety of his patients, putting them through unnecessary chemotherapy and other treatments just so that he could collect additional millions from Medicare. The mere thought of what he did is chilling."
Chemotherapy is a dangerous procedure for a person to go through even when they have cancer because it harms your good cells, as well as the cancerous ones. The treatments also have a lot of side effects including hair loss, weight-loss, vomiting and immune deficiencies, according to the National Cancer Institute.
Fata is expected to face a maximum sentence of 175 years in prison at his sentencing in February.
