A Roslyn cardiologist was arrested for allegedly defrauding Medicare and Medicaid of more than $1.3 million in claims during the coronavirus pandemic, according to a release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of New York.
Officials said Dr. Perry Frankel, 64, charged Medicare and Medicaid for COVID-19 tests that were never conducted.
Frankel, the owner of Advanced Cardiovascular Diagnostics PLLC in New Hyde Park, was arrested on Wednesday and charged with three counts of health care fraud for the alleged scheme against Medicare and Medicaid.
“As alleged, exploiting a public health crisis by using patients who received COVID-19 tests at mobile testing sites to fraudulently bill Medicare and Medicaid for fictitious office visits is reprehensible,” U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of New York Breon Peace said. “This Office and our law enforcement partners will vigorously prosecute those who take advantage of the pandemic to steal from taxpayer-funded programs.”
The charges against Frankel, which were filed in Central Islip, are part of a larger effort by the Eastern District Criminal Division Fraud Section’s Medicare Fraud Strike Force. The strike force efforts, officials said, have resulted in charges being filed against 21 individuals for their alleged coronavirus-related schemes. The alleged schemes, officials said, have resulted in nearly $150 million in false claims being submitted.
“The Department of Justice’s Health Care Fraud Unit and our partners are dedicated to rooting out schemes that have exploited the pandemic,” Assistant Attorney General of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division Kenneth A. Polite Jr. said. “Today’s enforcement action reinforces our commitment to using all available tools to hold accountable medical professionals, corporate executives, and others who have placed greed above care during an unprecedented public health emergency.”
Since its creation in March 2007, officials said, the strike force has charged more than 4,000 individuals for submitting false claims totaling almost $19 billion.
Efforts to reach Frankel or law enforcement for further comment on the matter were unavailing.
Frankel, during the start of the coronavirus pandemic in 2020, used a 40-foot mobile medical unit to provide heart disease patients with the care they needed without going to his office.
Frankel’s team was able to perform blood pressure readings, lab work, electrocardiograms and other tests from the mobile unit. They traveled to community centers and apartment complexes across Long Island and Queens. The team offered house calls when necessary.
Prior to the coronavirus outbreak, Frankel and his team used the bus to offer care to police officers and other high-stress workers who may be at increased risk for heart disease.
