A Southern California couple has agreed to pay $10 million dollars for their alleged role in a widespread scheme to defraud Medicare and Medi-Cal programs.
Dr. Mohammad Rasekhi and his wife, Sheila Busheri, are accused of submitting false healthcare claims and engaging in a kickback scheme through businesses they own, according to the California Department of Justice.
Rasekhi is the founder and chief medical officer of Southern California Medical Center, a group of general practice clinics. His wife serves as the chief executive officer of the group. The couple also co-owns Universal Diagnostic Laboratories, a medical testing facility.
Court documents described the medical group as a “non-profit, Federally Qualified Health Center that provides healthcare services to underserved patient populations.”
The schemes reportedly took place between 2014 and 2021. Rasekhi operated offices across the Southland with locations in Van Nuys, Pomona, Pico Rivera, Long Beach, El Monte and Woodland Hills. The lab testing facility was located in Van Nuys.
The couple is accused of submitting fraudulent billing claims to federal healthcare programs.
Prosecutors alleged they paid third-party marketers illegal kickbacks for referring Medicare and Medi-Cal beneficiaries to their clinics. The move violated the Anti-Kickback Statute.
Officials said they also knowingly paid kickbacks to outside clinics for referring patients to their lab testing facility by providing above-market rent payments, discounts on lab services to staff and writing off any balances owed in exchange for referrals.
Through this scheme, the couple is accused of receiving excess reimbursement from Medi-Cal.
The couple has agreed to pay $10 million in a settlement, with the State of California receiving $4 million and the federal government receiving $6 million.
“When healthcare professionals exploit the Medi-Cal program, which is intended to help the state’s most vulnerable populations, they betray the very principles of the Hippocratic Oath and undermine a program designed to support the elderly, the ill, and those in need,” said Attorney General Rob Bonta. “The alleged actions of Dr. Rasekhi not only broke the trust of his patients but also diverted essential resources away from vital healthcare services that benefit the community. My office is dedicated to ensuring that integrity and compassion guide the care provided through the Medi-Cal program.”
According to the Los Angeles Times, Rasekhi surrendered his medical license earlier in December after the Medical Board of California filed an accusation against him, alleging he sexually abused three women under his care.
The couple has denied all allegations and Rasekhi chose to waive his rights to a hearing and retire from medicine rather than fight the accusations, the Times reported.
A Southern California couple has agreed to pay $10 million dollars for their alleged role in a widespread scheme to defraud Medicare and Medi-Cal programs. Dr. Mohammad Rasekhi and his wife, Sheila Busheri, are accused of submitting false healthcare claims and engaging in a kickback scheme through businesses they own, according to the California Department […]
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