ATLANTA PHYSICIAN SENTENCED FOR MEDICAID FRAUD

Dr. Aaron Hurowitz Sentenced To Over Two Years in Prison For Submitting $375,000 in False and Fraudulent Claims to Medicaid

Atlanta, GA - AARON M. HUROWITZ, 57, of Atlanta, Georgia, was sentenced today by United States District Judge Beverly B. Martin on federal charges of health care fraud related to a scheme to defraud the State of Georgia Medicaid Program. HUROWITZ was sentenced to 2 years, 3 months in federal prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release, and was fined $60,000. He was also ordered to pay $375,000 in restitution to Medicaid.

HUROWITZ pleaded guilty to the charges on January 5, 2007, and agreed as part of his plea that he had caused a $375,000 loss to Medicaid.

United States Attorney David E. Nahmias said: "The Medicaid system is funded with federal and state taxpayer dollars to ensure that needy citizens have access to health care. Dr. Hurowitz, a licensed physician and approved Medicaid provider, abused the government's trust to steal hundreds of thousands of dollars from the Medicaid program. We, along with our colleagues in state government, continue to view health care fraud as a high priority, particularly when the ultimate victims are our taxpayers and the defendants are medical professionals entrusted to provide only adequate health care, but also to submit honest claims for their health care services."

According to United States Attorney Nahmias and the information presented in court: HUROWITZ is a doctor of osteopathic medicine and the former owner and operator of "Midtown Medical Center," formerly located at 849 Peachtree Street, Atlanta, Georgia. Between March 1997 and October 2002, the State of Georgia Medicaid Program paid HUROWITZ, who was at the time an approved Medicaid provider, for physician services he claimed to have rendered to Medicaid patients. A significant portion of these claims, however, were fraudulent. The evidence showed that HUROWITZ billed for services that were not provided; "upcoded," or submitted claims for services at higher levels of reimbursement than were supported by the services that were actually provided; and also billed for medically unnecessary services, including numerous drug screens. In addition, while HUROWITZ was being investigated, both by the Georgia Department of Community Health and by the State Health Care Fraud Control Unit, he falsified numerous medical records in an effort to conceal his fraudulent billing practices.

This case was investigated by Special Agents of the Georgia Bureau of Investigation and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

Georgia Assistant Attorney General Scott Smeal of the State Health Care Fraud Control Unit and Assistant United States Attorney Paul Monnin prosecuted the case.

For further information please contact David E. Nahmias (pronounced NAH-me-us), United States Attorney, or Charysse L. Alexander, Executive Assistant United States Attorney, through Patrick Crosby, Public Affairs Officer, U.S. Attorney's Office, at (404) 581-6016. The Internet address for the HomePage for the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Northern District of Georgia is www.usdoj.gov/usao/gan.