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UPDATE: Radiation Poisoning Worries Emerge In Billing Fraud Raid
http://www.wsaz.com/news/headlines/BREAKING_NEWS_Coal_Grove_Office_Being_Raided_in_Multi-Million_Dollar_Billing_Fraud_Investigation_124353274.html ^ | 6/22/2011 | Randy Yohe

Posted on 06/22/2011 4:21:42 PM PDT by Morgana

COAL GROVE, OH (WSAZ) -- Mass radiation poisoning is the overwhelming concern after a state and federal raid today on a local doctor and imaging center. We’re talking about suspected medical insurance fraud on a grand scale - linked to maybe thousands of unneeded cat scans.

The raid Wednesday morning involved numerous agencies, everybody from the local sheriff - to the department of defense, because patients connected to the military are involved. Click here to find out more!

We’re told the raid on a Coal Grove, Ohio medical center involves multi-millions in suspected Medicaid and Medicare fraud. And agents say much of the illegal billing came from a family of unethical doctors who blatantly disregarded human health.

Betty York told us; “I got the injections and I got the scans.” Betty is one of many patients across the Tri-State who see Dr. Peter Tsai at the Watkins-Tsai medical center. We were asked not to show the more than 40 state and federal undercover agents collecting boxes and boxes of medical records.

Investigators say Dr. Peter Tsai examined his patients - then sent them across the hall to his parents’ cat scan center. And agents say all three fraudulently billed the government for millions. Sheriff Jeff Lawless explained; “All patients of his had to have cat scans - and they were either unneeded or unbilled procedures.”

Federal agents say since 2008 this small town medical center led the entire nation in billing for cat scans, more than the whole state of Florida. And some patients were given an unheard of more than 100 cat scans over a two year period Sheriff Lawless:” Some children had multiple scans; we're scared that patients were abused. Betty York adds; “I had cat scans, it's scary, you don't know what's going to happen to you.

(Excerpt) Read more at wsaz.com ...


TOPICS: Crime/Corruption; US: Ohio
KEYWORDS: catscan; coalgrove; doctor; dod; fraud; medicade; medical; medicare; medicine; money; ohio; scam

1 posted on 06/22/2011 4:21:45 PM PDT by Morgana
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To: Morgana

Of course the TSA and DHS can irradiate you and their own workers in airports and train stations and no one says a thing...


2 posted on 06/22/2011 4:30:46 PM PDT by GraceG
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To: dead; GSWarrior; AppyPappy; bcsco; SZonian; Pan_Yan; El Sordo; mewzilla; tcrlaf; Red Badger; ...

update


3 posted on 06/22/2011 4:32:08 PM PDT by Morgana (I speak no more)
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To: Morgana

This assumes they were actually doing the scans...


4 posted on 06/22/2011 4:40:05 PM PDT by Ingtar (Together we go broke (from a Pookie18 post))
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To: Morgana
Actually doing the tests would cut into the fraud profits.

I think some "patients" may claim the tests were done to avoid self incrimination.

5 posted on 06/22/2011 4:53:06 PM PDT by dead (I've got my eye out for Mullah Omar.)
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To: Morgana
http://www.radiologyinfo.org/en/safety/index.cfm?pg=sfty_xray

Computed Tomography (CT)-Abdomen and Pelvis
15 mSv

Computed Tomography (CT)-Abdomen and Pelvis,
repeated with and without contrast material
30 mSv

http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=graphic-science-radiation-exposure

Airport scanner (backscatter method):
0.0001 mSv

Not much risk that airport screening will cause an equivalent harm...

6 posted on 06/22/2011 5:04:53 PM PDT by HangnJudge
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To: Morgana

If what this looks like at first glance is true, this guy should go to prison. I read in one report that he ordered 100 CT scans - On One Patient! That’s disgusting.

He’s also a family practitioner, one of the primary care provider specialties that the government has been pushing as ‘gatekeepers’ to prevent unnecessary specialty care.

I encourage everyone to be very involved in their own medical care, to research their own conditions and the type of treatment they are receiving, and Never Ever assume that all doctors are equally effective. They most definitely are not, and literally whether or not you live or die can be dependent upon who your doctor is.


7 posted on 06/22/2011 5:17:59 PM PDT by pieceofthepuzzle
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To: Morgana

Interesting.

Thank you.


8 posted on 06/22/2011 5:45:59 PM PDT by El Sordo (The bigger the government, the smaller the citizen.)
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To: pieceofthepuzzle; All

i can’t find it now on FR, but i saw an article here about a week ago, talking about how many hospitals are doing a very high number of double scans.
...but oddly, it said this rate was almost zero in teaching hospitals.

i did find these others, including back to 2007.
i suspect that nationwide, this is an incredibly huge amount of wast and fraud, with some scans being billed for $7,000 each...

http://managinghealthcarecosts.blogspot.com/2011/06/unnecessary-double-chest-ct-scans.html

http://www.boston.com/news/health/articles/2007/11/26/radiation_risk/
Radiation risk
Doctors concerned about the exploding use of CT scanners

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/2407632/posts
15,000 Will Die From CT Scans Done In 1 Year


9 posted on 06/22/2011 5:48:39 PM PDT by Elendur (the hope and change i need: Sarah / Colonel West in 2012)
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To: HangnJudge

Durations are know doubt shorter in the airport than in the exam room hence why the lower radiation dose. (assuming they are correct)

Agents who have to be around the machines all the time, is an entirely differnt matter.


10 posted on 06/22/2011 5:55:28 PM PDT by DarkWaters ("Deception is a state of mind --- and the mind of the state" --- James Jesus Angleton)
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To: Elendur; ransomnote; All

finallyh found it. it seems to be a widespread problem:

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/2736673/posts

Medicare Claims Show Overuse for CT Scanning
NyTimes.com ^ | June 17, 2011 | WALT BOGDANICH, JO CRAVEN McGINTY

Posted on Saturday, June 18, 2011 5:11:42 PM by ransomnote

Long after questions were first raised about the overuse of powerful CT scans, hundreds of hospitals across the country needlessly exposed patients to radiation by scanning their chests twice on the same day, according to federal records and interviews with researchers.

Performing two scans in succession is rarely necessary, radiologists say, yet some hospitals were doing that more than 80 percent of the time for their Medicare chest patients, according to Medicare outpatient claims from 2008, the most recent year available. The rate is typically less than 1 percent, or in some cases zero, at major university teaching hospitals. “


11 posted on 06/22/2011 6:04:30 PM PDT by Elendur (the hope and change i need: Sarah / Colonel West in 2012)
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To: Morgana

How many more doctors like this are out there?

President Palin will put an end to this kind of rampant fraud.


12 posted on 06/22/2011 8:13:56 PM PDT by Palladin (Sarah Palin in 2012!)
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To: Morgana; dead; GSWarrior; AppyPappy; bcsco; SZonian; Pan_Yan; El Sordo; mewzilla; tcrlaf

What? I need another Cat Scan, Doc?????..............

13 posted on 06/23/2011 5:36:03 AM PDT by Red Badger (Nothing is a 'right' if someone has to give it to you................)
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