ਦਲਜੀਤ ਸਿੰਘ ਇੰਡੀਆਨਾ: ਵਾਸ਼ਿੰਗਟਨ ਡੀ.ਸੀ. ਵਿਚ ਸਭ ਤੋਂ ਵੱਡੇ
ਨਗਰ ਕੀਰਤਨ ਦੇ ਸੰਯੋਜਕ ਡਾਕਟਰ ਪਰਮਜੀਤ ਸਿੰਘ ਅਜਰਾਵਤ ਸਿੰਘ ਅਤੇ ਓਹਨਾ ਦੀ ਧਰਮ ਪਤਨੀ
ਸੁਖਜੀਵਨ ਅਜਾਰਵਤ ਨੂੰ ਢਾਈ ਮਿਲੀਅਨ ਡਾਲਰ ਦੇ ਫਰਾਡ ਵਿੱਚ ਦੋਸ਼ੀ ਬਣਾਇਆ ਗਿਆ ਹੈ। ਸਰਕਾਰੀ
ਜਾਂਚ ਦੇ ਮੁਤਾਬਕ ਓਹਨਾ ਨੇ ਓਬਾਮਾ ਕੇਅਰ ਅਤੇ ਮੈਡੀਕੇਡ ਵਿਚ ਫਰਜੀ ਬਿੱਲ ਭੇਜਕੇ, ਸਰਕਾਰ
ਨੂੰ ਚੂਨਾ ਲਾਇਆ ਹੈ। ਸਭ ਨੂੰ ਪਤਾ ਹੈ ਅਮਰੀਕਾ ਵਾਲੇ ਨਹੀਂ ਛੱਡਦੇ ਕਿਸੇ ਨੂੰ, ਕਿਉਂ
ਪੈਸੇ ਜਿਆਦਾ ਕਮਾਉਣ ਵਾਸਤੇ ਗਲਤ ਤਰੀਕੇ ਅਪਣਾਉਂਦੇ ਹੋ? ਪਰ ਕੀ ਕੀਤਾ ਜਾਵੇ ਲਾਲਚ ਬੁਰੀ
ਬਲਾ ਹੈ। ਇਕ ਸੰਤ ਸਿੰਘ ਛਤਵਾਲ ਹੈ, ਓਸ ਨੂੰ ਵੀ ਆਉਣ ਵਾਲੇ ਮਹੀਨਿਆਂ ਵਿੱਚ ਸਜ਼ਾ ਹੋਣੀ
ਹੈ... ਹੱਕ ਦੀ ਖਾਓ, ਭਾਵੇਂ ਘੱਟ ਖਾਓ...
GREENBELT,
Md. (WJLA) - A federal grand jury has indicted a husband and wife in
Maryland for medical fraud, to the tune of $2.3 million.
Doctors Paramjit Ajrawat, 60, and his wife Sukhveen Ajrawat,
56, both of Potomac, are accused of over-billing their patients, and
then collecting insurance payouts from government agencies like Medicare
and Medicaid.
The couple has owned and operated the Washington Pain Management Center
in Greenbelt since 1985. P. Ajrawat treated patients for physical
ailments, while his wife, a board-certified psychiatrist, handled
clients with mental concerns.
According to a ten-page, 16-count indictment, the Ajrawats routinely
performed low cost medical procedures, but then billed insurance
providers for operations that netted higher reimbursements. For
instance, prosecutors have accused the Ajrawats of submitting hundreds
of claims for epidurals, when in fact they'd given clients a less
intensive injection using lidocaine.
The alleged false billing, which went on from Aug. 2008 through May
2014, bilked $2,329,109 from Medicare, Medicaid, TRICARE, the Federal
Employees Health Benefits Program, and the Office of Workers'
Compensation Program.
On Friday, P. Ajrawat surrendered himself to the U.S. District Court
District of Maryland for his initial appearance. His wife, who is
currently hospitalized with a serious blood infection, is scheduled to
surrender herself Monday.
During court proceedings, federal prosecutors said an independent
auditor first noted an exorbitant number of epidural claims stemming
from the Ajrawat's clinic. During an in-person visit to their office, S.
Ajrawat reportedly told investigators they couldn't see the epidural
machine because it was in a screening room with a patient. S. Ajrawat
later sent investigators a lease agreement for the couple's epidural
system, however prosecutors say that document was clearly forged.
A handful of agencies launched an investigation into the Ajrawats, which
included interviewing the couple's patients and employees. Federal
prosecutors say most of the patients were unaware of the over-billing.
Many of the workers stated the Ajrawats had instructed them to lie to
police.
Following court Friday, P. Ajrawat used his defense attorney as a human
shield while walking from the courthouse door to his black Mercedes Benz
SUV parked in a nearby lot.
Reporter: "Doctor, do you have a comment about the allegations that
you're facing, I know there are 16 counts in total."
Defense Attorney: "He does not."
ABC7 visited the Ajrawat's $1.5 million home along the 12100 block of
Stoney Creek Road in Potomac. S. Ajrawat's mother, currently visiting
from India, answered the door:
"Oh she is a very hard-working person, a very honest person, and we're
shocked."
In late April, a legion of federal authorities raided the couple's home.
Next-door-neighbor Susie Redmond recalls peering out her dining room
window, and seeing the calamity.
"I look out and there's all this FBI, and they have guns drawn," Redmond
remarked.
Redmond snapped photos with her iPhone while agents loaded black plastic
tubs full of evidence, into a white unmarked minivan.
"I mean they've [the Ajrawats] always been outstanding people. I never
knew anything was going on, nothing," Redmond added.
As of Friday, the Maryland Board of Physicians had not suspended or
revoked either doctor's medical license.
The Ajrawats each face 16-counts of healthcare fraud. Every count
carries a sentence of up to ten years in federal prison.
