3rd Detroit Area Doctor Pleads Guilty In $5.4M Medicare Fraud

DETROIT, MI — A Bloomfield Hills doctor pleaded guilty in a Detroit federal court Thursday to a count each of conspiracy to commit healthcare fraud and wire fraud for his role in a $5.4 million Medicare fraud scheme that involved phony physician visits and drug prescriptions, the Justice Department said. Dr. Aaron Goldfein, 52, is the third Detroit-area physician to plead guilty in the scheme

In January, Goldfein’s co-conspirators, William Sokoll, 61, of Royal Oak, and William Binder, 60, of Ypsilanti, each pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit health care and wire fraud. Sokoll was a physician who lost his medical license in 2008 and Binder was a licensed physician who surrendered his Drug Enforcement Administration license in March 2011. Both worked for Godfein at Tri-City Medical Center in Livonia, Michigan, for Goldfein.

As part of his plea, Goldfein admitted to being part of a scheme in which his co-conspirators represented themselves as licensed physicians, performed physician home visits and provided other services for Medicare beneficiaries, although they were not licensed to practice medicine in Michigan. Goldfein would then bill Medicare, through Tri City, as if he himself had completed these visits. Goldfein also admitted to being part of a scheme in which he received kickbacks in exchange for writing home health prescriptions.

In his plea agreement, Sokoll admitted to being one of the unlicensed physicians employed at Tri City. Sokoll admitted that he and one of his co-conspirators prepared phony medical documentation about the home visits and other services provided to beneficiaries, when in fact the beneficiaries were not treated by a physician licensed in Michigan. In addition, Goldfein, who is licensed, signed the medical documentation completed by Sokoll and the other unlicensed co-conspirator for services the physician did not provide to beneficiaries.

Additionally, Sokoll, Binder and Goldfein admitted in connection with their guilty pleas that they and other unlicensed co-conspirators prescribed beneficiaries medications, including controlled substances, under Goldfein’s name and DEA registration number, when although Goldfein had not seen or diagnosed the beneficiaries. Medicare Part D ultimately paid for some of these prescriptions, which Goldfein ultimately signed.

In addition to writing prescriptions for controlled substances, Binder, as part of his guilty plea, admitted to being part of a scheme at Tri-City in which he and his co-conspirators would submit or cause the submission of false claims to Medicare by billing for physician home visits where referrals for the services were obtained through the payment and promise of payment of kickbacks. Members of the conspiracy, including Binder, would also bill for home health care services that were, at times, not provided and not medically necessary, and where referrals for services were obtained through the payment and promise of payment of kickbacks.

The FBI and U.S. Department of Health and Human Services – Office of the Inspector General investigated the case, which was brought as part of the Medicare Fraud Strike Force under the supervision of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Michigan.

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