Texas doctor who faked patient diagnoses to fund lavish lifestyle learns his fate
A doctor in Texas has received a 10-year prison sentence after being found guilty of falsely diagnosing patients , all to support his extravagant lifestyle. On Wednesday, he was sentenced to 10 years in prison, followed by three years of supervised release.
The Department of Justice reported that Dr. Jorge Zamora-Quezada, M.D., was convicted on multiple charges , including one count of conspiracy to commit health care fraud , seven counts of health care fraud and one count of conspiracy to obstruct justice.
"Dr. Zamora-Quezada funded his luxurious lifestyle for two decades by traumatizing his patients, abusing his employees, lying to insurers, and stealing taxpayer money,” the DOJ’s Criminal Division head Matthew R. Galeotti said.
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Zamora-Quezada defrauded both patients and insurance companies by intentionally misdiagnosing individuals with rheumatoid arthritis, despite them not actually having this lifelong and incurable condition.
The 68-year-old orchestrated this fraudulent scheme from his office in Mission, Texas, with assistance from staff members who were reportedly abused and intimidated due to his position. The caregiver used his position to hire foreign staffers who needed employment to remain in the country on their J-1 visas and wouldn’t question his authority unless they risked being fired and deported.
Zamora-Quezada faslified patient medical records to fraudulently obtain insurance payments from various providers. He was found to have defrauded Medicare, Medicaid, TRICARE, and Blue Cross Blue Shield out of $28 million.
During the 25-day trial, other doctors from the Rio Grande Valley testified against him, uncovering unexpected insights as they treated numerous patients whom they believed were suffering from rheumatoid arthritis (RA). “For most (patients) it was obvious that they did not have rheumatoid arthritis,” one rheumatologist testified.
Upon sentencing, Zamora-Quezada also required to forfeit more than $28 million, which includes 13 real estate properties, a private jet, and a Maserati GranTurismo.
His scheme involved over $118 million in fraudulent claims. As a result of falsely diagnosing patients with chronic illnesses, he received over $28 million in payments from insurers for unnecessary tests and treatments.
The risky treatments prescribed by Zamora-Quezada led to patients experiencing severe side effects, such as strokes, jawbone necrosis, hair loss, and liver damage.
Certain regimens involved administering toxic medications that could have harmful or even fatal side effects. Some victims experienced intense pain that rendered them unable to carry out even basic daily activities.
“Constantly being in bed and being unable to get up from bed alone, and being pumped with medication, I didn’t feel like my life had any meaning,” one patient told the court. A mother compared her child to a lab rat with the amount of medication Zamora-Quezada prescribed.
Galeotti made a point to emphasize the emotional turmoil in this case instead of just the financial loss. "Today’s sentence is not just a punishment—it’s a warning. Medical professionals who harm Americans for personal enrichment will be aggressively pursued and held accountable to protect our citizens and the public fisc,” Galeotti said.
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