California Medical License Defense, Medi-Cal Fraud Charges
California Attorney General Edmund Brown Jr. announced the arrest of several individuals in a massive medi-cal fraud scam in Los Angeles County. The defendants were arrested at the Downtown M Medical Clinic on Wilshire Boulevard and include: the clinic’s owner Dr. Peter Shrier, the office manager Ella Rozenberg, Ella’s husband Arkady Rozenberg, Dr. Anna Gravich, a physician who helped falsify medical records, and Anna’s husband, Gersha Gravich, who helped run the clinic. The others arrested were sidewalk solicitors who recruited the patients.
The defendants allegedly hired recruiters or “cappers” to solicit pregnant women to visit the Los Angeles clinic. The women were asked not to use their real names in exchange for $30 of free baby merchandise or the promise of medical services. In exchange, the recruiters were given $100 for every woman that visited the clinic.
The clinic targeted pregnant women so it could enroll them in special Medi-Cal programs for low income women. When enrolled in the program, doctors began to bill the State of California at a higher rate for temporary prenatal health benefits. The cost of these services ranged from $400-$500 per patient. Once these services were rendered, the women were told that if they wanted more money or benefits, they could re-enroll in the program using another alias.
The AG has estimated the loss relating to this medical insurance fraud case to be in excess of $2 million. Dr. Shrier, the Rozenbergs and the Graviches have all been charged with:
Penal Code Section 487(a)- Grand Theft
Penal Code Section 12022.6(a)(3)- Theft of more than $1.3 million
Welfare & Institutions Code Section 14107-Presenting false Medi-Cal claims.
As a result of being charged with several felony counts, Dr. Rozenberg and Dr. Shrier will also have to self-report to the California Medical Board. In California, anytime a physician is charged with a felony criminal charge, they must report this accusation to the medical board even if they plead not guilty at arraignment. Thus, both doctors will be fighting to maintain their professional license while these criminal charges are pending.
If you or someone you know has been arrested or questioned for a criminal charge, whether a misdemeanor or felony they should seek legal counsel immediately. The California Medical Board has clear rules on self-reporting criminal charges and ignorance is no defense.
