Princeton Optometrist Indicted On Health Care Fraud, Kickback Charges, Feds Say

PRINCETON, NJ — A 71-year-old Princeton resident and licensed optometrist has been charged with conspiring to commit health care fraud and violating the federal Anti-Kickback Statute, U.S. Attorney Robert Frazer said.

E. Bruce DiDonato, founder and former CEO of a New Jersey management company, was charged in a seven-count indictment with one count of conspiracy to commit health care fraud, two substantive counts of health care fraud, one count of conspiracy to offer and pay health care kickbacks in connection with illegal referrals, and three substantive counts of paying health care kickbacks.

According to the indictment, DiDonato was the founder and an owner of an optometry practice and an ambulatory surgical center in Hamilton Township, which performed eye surgeries and procedures, including cataract surgery, corneal surgery and YAG capsulotomy. The conspiracy ran from 2015 through March 2023, according to court documents.

"As alleged, the defendant used his company to pay doctors and surgeons illegal kickbacks in exchange for the surgeons bringing patients to his eye care practice, where they were subjected to unnecessary diagnostic tests, all so the defendant could enrich himself by billing Medicare," Frazer said. "This Office will continue to pursue and prioritize complex health care fraud schemes that waste Government funds and harm patients."

FBI Newark Special Agent in Charge Stefanie Roddy said the case reflects a broader pattern of abuse of trust in the medical field.

"Dr. DiDonato's alleged deception of his patients, staff, and Medicare, which countless Americans depend on, is a scheme rife with disregard for the rules and integrity that govern the medical industry," Roddy said. "People must be able to trust their doctors, and many do so, albeit blindly. This case demonstrates the FBI's commitment to rooting out fraudsters and bringing justice to the victims impacted by these crimes."

Naomi D. Gruchacz, special agent in charge with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General, said the alleged conduct diverted resources from patients who depend on Medicare.

"Medicare patients deserve care guided by medical need, not illicit financial arrangements," Gruchacz said. "As alleged, the defendant put profit ahead of patient well-being and misused the Medicare program through unnecessary testing and illegal kickbacks, diverting critical resources away from those who rely on them."

According to the indictment, DiDonato and a co-defendant identified as Provider-1, who also managed the practice and surgical center, paid referring physicians identified as Provider-2 and Provider-3 illegal kickbacks and bribes to induce them to refer patients for medically unnecessary diagnostic testing. The indictment alleges DiDonato and Provider-1 paid the referring providers up to approximately 50 percent of the total Medicare reimbursement for diagnostic tests performed on patients they had referred for surgeries.

The indictment describes several specific transactions, including a check for approximately $2,632.45 paid on Dec. 15, 2021, to a bank account associated with Provider-3, alleged to be a kickback for referring surgical patients. It also cites payments to a bank account associated with Provider-2 on Jan. 20, 2022, and May 17, 2022, totaling approximately $17,536, portions of which — approximately $2,756.93 and $3,000, respectively — are alleged to have been kickbacks tied to diagnostic test referrals.

Court documents also cite two specific Medicare claims underlying the health care fraud counts: an approximately $200 claim submitted Aug. 9, 2021, for which Medicare paid about $26.72, and a similar claim submitted Dec. 3, 2021, for which Medicare paid the same amount.

According to the indictment, DiDonato and others concealed the kickback payments through sham agreements describing them as consulting fees for services that were not rendered, and structured them as monthly "flat fees" based on a percentage of the practice's prior-year Medicare reimbursements for referred patients. Prosecutors allege DiDonato caused the submission of approximately $3.4 million in fraudulent claims to Medicare, of which Medicare paid approximately $1 million.

If convicted, DiDonato faces a statutory maximum of 10 years in prison on the health care fraud conspiracy and substantive fraud counts, five years on the kickback conspiracy count, and 10 years on each substantive kickback count. The indictment also includes a forfeiture allegation seeking any property traceable to the alleged offenses.

Separately, the Department of Justice announced it has resolved its criminal investigation into the Campus Eye entities under the Criminal Division's Corporate Enforcement and Voluntary Self-Disclosure Policy. The department declined to prosecute the entities for the scheme, and they have agreed to pay $1 million in disgorgement.

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