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Indian-origin doctor in New Jersey charged with offering drug for sex
An Indian-origin physician in New Jersey has been charged with unlawfully prescribing drugs to patients in return for sexual favours, according to a statement from the U.S. Attorney's Office.
Ritesh Kalra, 51, a resident of Secaucus, allegedly ran a 'pill mill' out of his medical practice, regularly dispensing high doses of opioids such as oxycodone and promethazine with codeine without valid medical reasons, the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of New Jersey said on Friday.
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'Physicians have a serious responsibility—but as alleged, Dr Kalra abused that trust by fuelling addiction, exploiting vulnerable patients for sex, and defrauding New Jersey's public health insurance programme,' said U.S. Attorney Alina Habba in the statement.
Kalra, who practised internal medicine in Fair Lawn, is accused of issuing over 31,000 oxycodone prescriptions between January 2019 and February 2025, including some days where he wrote more than 50 prescriptions.
Authorities also allege that Kalra submitted fraudulent claims for in-person consultations and counselling sessions that never took place.
He appeared in federal court in Newark on Thursday before a U.S. Magistrate Judge. He was released on home confinement and a $100,000 unsecured bond. He has been ordered to close his medical practice while legal proceedings are ongoing.
Kalra's lawyer, Michael Baldassar, denied the allegations and criticised the government's statement, telling the New York Daily News that it read 'like a supermarket tabloid.'
With inputs from agencies
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