More bad news for St. Joseph Hospital in London, Ky.: One of its cardiologists, Sandesh “Sam” Patil, has admitted to stenting a patient unnecessarily, and faces 30 to 37 months in prison.
As
reported here earlier, St. Joseph’s has in recent years faced a firestorm of charges, private and federal, that cardiac surgeries were performed there without cause.
In April the U.S. government issued a notice of intent to file against St. Joseph’s cardiologist Sandesh Rajaram Patil, and this month filed information with the Eastern District Court of Kentucky, charging Patil with false statements.
The fed said that Patil had on one occasion ordered stenting for a patient while “well knowing that the medical record contained a materially false, fictitious and fraudulent statement and entry” – i.e., that the patient’s coronary blockage was at least 70% complete, the minimum needed to justify a Medicaid claim.
Though the hospital only got $6,088.45 for the procedure, court documents show Patil was threatened with five years in prison and $250,000 in fines on the charge. In pleading out, it appears the doctor has admitted to other unjustified stentings -- the
FBI press release says, “St. Joseph’s hospital has repaid the government $256,800 for cardiac stent procedures that Patil falsely submitted for reimbursement in 2009 and 2010.” (According to the Louisville
Courier-Journal, however, Patil’s lawyer still maintains
he has only admitted to the one.)
In either case, pleading out seems to have been the wiser course: Patil now faces only 30 to 37 months and no significant fines. Several other St. Joseph’s cardiologists still face charges.