Ex-Gym Owner From Cedar Grove Gets Jail Term For Healthcare Fraud

CEDAR GROVE, NJ — A former gym owner from Cedar Grove was sentenced to 50 months in prison for his role in a conspiracy to defraud New Jersey state benefit programs, federal prosecutors announced Thursday.

According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Brian Catanzarite, 43, previously pleaded guilty to one count of healthcare fraud.

Catanzarite admitted that from March 2015 through January 2017, he conspired to defraud New Jersey state benefit programs, authorities stated.

According to prosecutors:

“Catanzarite was recruited by one of his former gym members to become a sales representative of a company that marketed compounded medications. The marketing company received a percentage of every prescription that its sales representatives steered toward a particular compounding pharmacy.”

Prosecutors continued:

“To maximize his profit, Catanzarite convinced state beneficiaries to obtain compounded medications regardless of their medical necessity. On several occasions, Catanzarite even paid an advanced nurse practitioner, introduced to him by the marketing company, or used a telemedicine service that was paid for by the marketing company, to fraudulently obtain compounded medication prescriptions. Catanzarite caused losses of at least $3.5 million and personally made over $1.1 million from the scheme.”

In addition to the prison term, U.S. District Judge John Michael Vazquez sentenced Catanzarite to three years of supervised release and ordered restitution of $3.5 million.

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