According to federal authorities and US News, federal prosecutors accused a Massachusetts doctor of cheating healthcare benefit programs by paying for services that were not rendered.
According to a statement from the US attorney’s office in Boston, Olarewaju James Oladipo, 57, of Canton, faces 11 counts of health care fraud. Later Tuesday, Oladipo, an orthopedic physician, was set to appear before a magistrate judge.
US News wrote an email to his federal public defender seeking comment.
Prosecutors suspect that from January 2016 to December 2019, Oladipo manipulated medical records of patient visits to reflect examinations and treatments that were not delivered. Prosecutors said he did so by invoicing for more complex and hence more expensive services that were not supplied, a tactic known as “upcoding.”
Prosecutors claim he billed for more than 60 patients per day on average and sometimes more than 90, implying that most appointments were only five minutes long. However, he is accused of invoicing for appointments that would have lasted far longer, up to 45 minutes, in certain situations.
