NY Doc Bribed $25K in NJ Lab Scam

NEWARK, N.J. – Another doctor has fallen. Thomas V. Savino, 57, of Staten Island, New York, was indicted today on charges stemming from a massive bribery scheme orchestrated by Biodiagnostic Laboratory Services LLC (BLS), of Parsippany, New Jersey. U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced the indictment, adding to a growing list of medical professionals caught in the web of corruption.

Savino is accused of accepting cash bribes totaling at least $25,000 from BLS employees and associates between July 2012 and April 2013. According to the indictment, these kickbacks weren’t charitable donations; they were payments for steering patients to BLS, generating a staggering $375,000 in lab business for the now-defunct company. He faces one count of conspiring to commit violations of the Anti-Kickback Statute, the Federal Travel Act and wire fraud; three substantive violations of each of those statutes.

This isn’t an isolated incident. Savino is the fourth physician to be indicted in connection with the BLS scheme. Ahmed El Soury was indicted December 13, 2016, and Brett Ostrager, previously indicted August 11, 2015, already pleaded guilty on December 22, 2015, receiving a 37-month prison sentence on June 8, 2016. Bernard Greenspan, indicted March 14, 2016, is slated for trial January 31, 2017. The feds are building a case, and they’re not slowing down.

The scope of this operation is breathtaking. So far, 41 individuals have pleaded guilty – a shocking 27 of them doctors – all tied to the BLS bribery scheme. Organizers admitted to funneling millions in bribes, resulting in over $100 million in payments from Medicare and private insurers. Investigators believe this represents the largest number of medical professionals ever prosecuted in a single bribery case. The operation has recovered over $12 million through forfeiture, and BLS itself pleaded guilty and forfeited all assets on June 28, 2016.

If convicted, Savino faces a maximum potential penalty of five years in prison for the Anti-Kickback and Federal Travel Act counts, and up to 20 years for the wire fraud charges. Each count also carries a potential fine of $250,000, or twice the gross gain or loss from the offense. The indictment makes clear these are accusations, and Savino is presumed innocent until proven guilty. His defense counsel is Mauro M. Wolfe, Esq., of New York, NY.

U.S. Attorney Fishman, who restructured the health care fraud practice at the New Jersey U.S. Attorney’s Office in 2010, has overseen the recovery of over $1.32 billion in health care and government fraud settlements, judgments, fines, restitution and forfeiture. The investigation is ongoing, with assistance from the FBI, U.S. Postal Inspection Service, IRS–Criminal Investigation, and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General. The Grimy Times will continue to follow this case and expose the rot within the healthcare system.