Queensbury Oncologist and Spouse to Pay $500,000 for Submitting False Claims to Medicare
ALBANY, NEW YORK – Dr. Vincent Koh and his wife and office manager, Milly Koh, have agreed to pay $500,000 for violating the False Claims Act by knowingly submitting false claims to Medicare for unapproved chemotherapy drugs, announced United States Attorney Grant C. Jaquith.
The Kohs own and operate a medical practice, with offices in Poughkeepsie and Glens Falls, New York, that specializes in the treatment of patients suffering from various forms of cancer. From mid-2010 to early 2012, the practice purchased various drugs purporting to contain the same active ingredients as drugs sold in the United States from a Canadian drug distributor who had obtained these drugs from foreign sources.
The drugs, some of which contained labeling in foreign languages, were not approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) as required for them to be distributed in the United States and were therefore not reimbursable by Medicare.
Dr. Koh’s practice purchased the foreign drugs at substantially lower prices than those charged for drugs from legitimate U.S. drug manufacturers and distributors. Dr. Koh administered these drugs to his patients, and caused his staff to submit false claims for the drugs to Medicare.
“Unlike prescription drugs picked up at a pharmacy, chemotherapeutic drugs generally are administered without any opportunity for patients to see the labeling, so cancer patients are particularly vulnerable to this sort of conduct,” said United States Attorney Jaquith.
The investigation and settlement were the result of a coordinated effort among the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of New York, HHS-OIG, FDA’s Office of Chief Counsel, and FDA’s Office of Criminal Investigations. The United States was represented in the civil investigation by Assistant U.S. Attorney Adam J. Katz.
Defendant: Dr. Vincent Koh
Criminal Charges: Violating the False Claims Act
City and State: Albany, New York
Exact Date: November 20, 2017
Sentence or Outcome: $500,000 Payment
Dollar Amount: $500,000
Key Facts
- State: New York
- Category: Fraud & Financial Crimes
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
ðŸâ€Â’ Get the grimiest stories delivered weekly. Subscribe free →
MORE FEDERAL CRIME NEWS
US NewsUS NewsUS NewsUS News