Latest news with #AjayAggarwal
News18
9 hours ago
- Health
- News18
Indian-Origin US Doctor To Pay $2 Million Over Fraudulent Billing For Fake Surgeries
Dr Ajay Aggarwal, an anesthesiologist and pain medicine doctor, billed federally funded health care programmes without actually performing the surgical procedures. A 63-year-old Indian-origin doctor has agreed to pay over $2 million to resolve allegations that he submitted false claims to federally funded health care programs for the surgical implantation of neurostimulator electrodes, according to US Attorney Nicholas J Ganjei. As per an official statement by the US Attorney's Office in the Southern District of Texas, Dr Ajay Aggarwal, an anesthesiologist and pain medicine doctor who also practices in Texas' Bellaire city, Lake Jackson city and Van Vleck (in Matagorda County), used to conduct his medical practice known as The Pain Relief & Wellness Centre. From November 16, 2021, to March 28, 2023, Aggarwal billed federally funded health care programmes, such as Medicare and the Department of Labour's Workers' Compensation Programmes, for the surgical implantation of neurostimulator electrodes. As these are invasive procedures that require use of an operating room, Medicare and other federally funded health care programmes pay thousands of dollars per procedure. However, it was later found that neither Aggarwal nor his staff performed these surgical procedures. Authorities alleged that patients only received devices used for electro-acupuncture, which only involved inserting monofilament wire a few millimetres into patients' ears and taping the neurostimulator behind the ear with an adhesive. As per the allegations, all device placements took place in Aggarwal's clinic, not a hospital or surgical centre, and no incision was made on a patient. 'A doctor who uses simple medical devices on his patients, yet bills Medicare for a sophisticated spinal surgery, is bilking the American taxpayer, plain and simple," said US Attorney Ganjei. As a result, Aggarwal was fined $2 million for billing fraud. 'The Southern District of Texas will ensure that losses to federally funded healthcare programs from fraudulent billing, like what happened here, are recouped and that wrongdoers are held accountable," Ganjei added. An Indian-origin physician admitted guilt last month to federal charges involving the unlawful prescription of powerful opioid medications, which led to the fatal overdoses of two individuals. Sentencing in the case is scheduled for October 31. view comments First Published: Disclaimer: Comments reflect users' views, not News18's. Please keep discussions respectful and constructive. Abusive, defamatory, or illegal comments will be removed. News18 may disable any comment at its discretion. By posting, you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.
India Today
19 hours ago
- Health
- India Today
Indian-origin US doctor fined $2M for false surgery billing fraud
A 63-year-old Indian-origin pain medicine doctor based in Houston, Texas, has agreed to pay more than $2 million (approximately Rs 17.4 crore) to settle allegations of healthcare fraud, according to the US Ajay Aggarwal agreed to pay $2,053,515 to resolve claims that he submitted false billing to Medicare and to the Department of Labor's Workers' Compensation Programs between November 2021 and March 2023, for surgical procedures that were never actually is an anesthesiologist and pain medicine doctor who also practices in Texas' Bellaire city, Lake Jackson city and Van Vleck (in Matagorda County). He runs his medical practice, called The Pain Relief & Wellness Center, through his own business and a company named PRWCSWTX LLC, according to the statement issued on Monday (August 11) by the US Attorney's Office, Southern District of Texas. Aggarwal billed federally funded healthcare programmes for the surgical implantation of neurostimulator electrodes, according to the statement. These are invasive procedures usually requiring use of an operating room. As a result, Medicare and other federally funded healthcare programmes pay thousands of dollars per procedure, the statement neither Aggarwal nor his staff performed these surgical procedures, according to the allegations, the statement further investigators said Aggarwal instead used electro-acupuncture devices on his patients, which involved inserting thin wires into the ear and taping a small neurostimulator behind the ear – none of which required surgery or treatments were done at Aggarwal's clinic, not a hospital or surgical centre, and no incision was made on a patient, according to the VOWS TO RECOVER LOSSES FROM FRAUDULENT MEDICARE BILLINGUS attorney Nicholas J Ganjei slammed the "fraudulent billing" by the doctor and vowed to recover the losses."A doctor who uses simple medical devices on his patients, yet bills Medicare for a sophisticated spinal surgery, is bilking the American taxpayer, plain and simple," said Ganjei."The Southern District of Texas will ensure that losses to federally funded healthcare programs from fraudulent billing, like what happened here, are recouped and that wrongdoers are held accountable," the attorney month, a doctor of Indian-origin admitted guilt to federal charges related to illegally prescribing strong opioids, resulting in the overdose deaths of two part of his plea, Sanjay Mehta admitted to writing unjustified prescriptions for oxycodone, methadone, and Roxicodone (a branded form of oxycodone hydrochloride) to three different patients in Virginia."Two of the three customers died of opioid intoxication within days of receiving their unlawful prescriptions," US Attorney's Office said in a quantum of Mehta's punishment will be announced on October 31.- Ends
Hindustan Times
2 days ago
- Hindustan Times
Delhi HC rebukes CBI over lack of action against errant officials in Signature View Apts case
New Delhi The matter would be next heard on September 18. (HT Archive) The Delhi High Court rebuked the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) for its laxity in initiating criminal action against Delhi Development Authority (DDA) officials and other individuals involved in the poor quality construction of Signature View Apartments in Delhi's Mukherjee Nagar, and criticised it for citing the lack of requisite sanction as a reason for the delay. The agency faced the ire of justice Girish Kathpalia on Monday, after the flat owners' lawyer, Ajay Aggarwal, apprised the court of lieutenant governor (LG) VK Saxena's direction to initiate criminal action against errant officials of the DDA and other agencies in 2023, and a vigilance inquiry to identify officers responsible for the lapse. Despite this, CBI counsel Anupam Sharma said that for the past two years, the agency had been requesting the DDA to provide the vigilance inquiry report and other relevant documents required to obtain sanction for initiating an inquiry against the officials. He further contended that action against private contractors could not proceed without such sanction, as the investigation was contingent on the involvement of public servants. Sharma further stated that the agency would promptly initiate action if the court directed the registration of an FIR, without obtaining sanction. Considering the contention, the court said, 'It is certainly surprising that the premiere investigating agency of the country is not able to get the requisite documentary record for more than two years, that too, from another government agency. Not just this, it appears that CBI is not seriously interested in this case because no officer/official from CBI is present in Court to assist the learned SPP.' It added, 'To add to it, there is no explanation at all as to why till date, no case has been registered by the CBI against the private contractors and testing agencies, for which approval under Section 17A is not required. Be that as it may, the present proceedings have to be taken to a logical conclusion. Since CBI does not want to act on its own and has been simply waiting for documents from DDA for the past more than two years, this Court has to decide the matter on merits after hearing all concerned.' The matter would be next heard on September 18. The court made the observations on a petition filed by Signature View Apartments homebuyers, seeking the constitution of a Special Investigation Team (SIT) or CBI probe into the conduct of erring DDA officials and contractors involved in the construction. Signature View Apartments, comprising 336 flats, was constructed by DDA between 2007 and 2010. Concerns regarding its structural stability arose within a few years, and a 2023 IIT Delhi report confirmed that the buildings were unsafe. On December 23, 2024, justice Mini Pushkarna allowed the demolition and reconstruction of the buildings, declaring them unsafe for habitation. The court also directed residents to vacate the premises within three months and ordered the DDA to pay rent to all flat owners until new flats were handed over. On December 5, 2024, the high court directed the CBI to send a notice to DDA's competent authority to initiate an inquiry, and asked the DDA to cooperate and supply the material at the earliest. To be sure, another bench of the Delhi High Court, in a separate petition, had restrained the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) and the Delhi Development Authority (DDA) from taking coercive action against nine flat owners of the Signature View Apartments in Mukherjee Nagar until August 25. The court, on August 7, acknowledged that while the residents were legally bound to vacate the flats as per the earlier ruling, DDA also has a corresponding obligation to comply with its direction regarding rental payments.
Time of India
2 days ago
- Health
- Time of India
Surgeries he never performed: Indian-origin Houston doctor agrees to pay over $2 million to settle medical fraud allegations
An Indian-origin doctor in Houston agreed to pay $2 million to settle medical fraud allegations against him. Dr Ajay Aggarwal, an Indian-origin pain medicine doctor from Houston, has agreed to pay over $2 million to resolve allegations of medical fraud against him, the US Justice Department revealed. Between 2021 and 2023, the 63-year-old doctor billed federally funded health care programs like Medicare and the Department of Labor's Workers' Compensation Programs for surgical implants that he never performed. Dr Aggarwal received thousands of dollars per procedure, but patients received simple devices which required no surgery. And all device placements used to take place at Aggarwal's clinic, not a hospital or surgical center. 'A doctor who uses simple medical devices on his patients, yet bills Medicare for a sophisticated spinal surgery, is billing the American taxpayer, plain and simple,' said US Attorney Nicholas J Ganjei.. 'The Southern District of Texas will ensure that losses to federally funded healthcare programs from fraudulent billing, like what happened here, are recouped and that wrongdoers are held accountable.' A 2023 document of the DOJ revealed that earlier he was accused of giving unnecessary treatment to federal employees with federal workers' compensation benefits and his pharmacy Medley, which was officially owned by his wife, filed the prescriptions. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Brilliant Uses For Baking Soda That Really Surprised Us Read More Undo An employee of Medley acted as a whistleblower and said that during his term of employment, he saw patients being sent unnecessary with unnecessary medications being prescribed. In some cases, the patients did not even see or meet Dr Aggarwal. And Medley employees were allegedly instructed to auto-fill medications on a monthly basis and to use pre-printed prescription pads to submit the prescriptions to DOL-OWCP without consideration of medical need. The new fraud of Dr Aggarwal came to be reported at a time when foreign doctors are under fire, while several Republican leaders said US needs more doctors and foreign doctors can fill the gap.
Yahoo
29-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
7 College Majors That Cannot Afford a Comfortable Retirement
On average, going to college greatly improves your chances of financial success in terms of income, unemployment likelihood and reported financial well-being, as an analysis from the Association of Public & Land Grant Universities showed. However, your college major can make a difference when it comes to long-term financial security. I'm a Self-Made Millionaire: Check Out: In fact, 60% of the majors studied in a report by professors Frank Smith and Ajay K. Aggarwal would not lead to earning enough to build up a large enough nest egg to afford a comfortable retirement, even with no student loan debt. Once you factor in taking on more debt to go to college, the odds drop, especially for women and minorities. According to their findings, only certain STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) and business-related majors are likely to earn enough over their lifetimes to afford a comfortable retirement. Even then, certain majors are not likely to lead to that outcome, particularly when factoring in debt. To get to a 50/50 chance of avoiding outliving your nest egg, you need a starting income of $48,500, according to the study. That's not to say that it's impossible to make up the gap later on, but below are seven majors and their typical starting pay, according to the research, which would not clear this bar: Major Starting pay Theatre $34,830 Hospitality management $38,250 Psych/sociology $38,610 Athletic training $39,860 English/writing $40,050 Political science $42,210 Food science $44,370 These are just a few of the many majors the report found would not earn enough. Even some STEM majors, like biology and chemistry, do not have high enough starting pay to lead to a comfortable retirement typically, they find. However, variations like chemical engineering do earn enough usually, with a starting pay of $65,520. While sometimes you need a particular major to get into a certain field, there are plenty of ways to adapt. Plus, just because some majors like biology might not lead to a comfortable retirement on average, that can certainly be used as a jumping-off point to get into medical school and then potentially secure a comfortable retirement as a doctor later on. Pay attention to what majors specific jobs or graduate schools may look for, but don't feel like you're always locked in. 'I still think that college grads can do okay with most majors, assuming they have an interest in taking a job outside their specific major field,' said Teresa Saputo-Crerend, co-founder of LaunchBreak, a networking platform for high-level women athletes. If you're willing to be flexible, leverage your contacts — including professors — and do the networking needed to land an internship, even if it's remote or during the school year, you can improve your chances of reaching your goals, she added. Plus, remember that getting your foot in the door is difficult, but it's important to keep doing the work. 'Getting a job these days is hard and can take up to a year. Patience, confidence and resilience are a necessity, as is finding some work to bridge the gap, preferably within the field one is looking for a job. For example, work at a retail clothing store if you are looking for a job in fashion; you never know who might be your customer,' said Saputo-Crerend. Learn More: If you've already graduated and are in a career that you don't think will lead to a secure retirement, or if you're deep into your studies, it's not necessarily too late to change direction. Pivoting is an option, said Saputo-Crerend. 'They can learn many, many different skills online,' she added. 'There are so many webinars and courses offered for free online. They can volunteer. They can try to do some job-shadowing. Pivoting requires patience as well.' Think about what skills you may have picked up along the way that can be used for this pivot too. College athletes, for example, typically develop 'time management, discipline, teamwork, etc. All of these soft skills can impress someone in any industry,' said Saputo-Crerend. 'It's the same for someone majoring in a field that won't be lucrative,' she noted. 'There is coursework in any major that teaches you skills. Psychology classes may require some coding, data analytics or behavioral research. This can all be applied to other industries.' More From GOBankingRates The New Retirement Problem Boomers Are Facing This article originally appeared on 7 College Majors That Cannot Afford a Comfortable Retirement
