CHESTERFIELD, MO Dr. Anthony Calandro, a Chesterfield resident, and owner of the Chiropractic Accident Centre of Crestwood  was convicted Nov. 8 of billing insurance companies for X-rays never taken and for appointments that the patients had canceled or missed. His billing assistant Sherry Rueter previously pled guilty to related charges.

 

According to testimony presented at trial, during 2010 and 2011, two undercover investigations revealed that Dr. Calandro and Ms. Rueter billed multiple insurance companies for services that were never rendered. From 2006 to 2011, they submitted numerous reimbursement claims that falsely stated that the Chiropractic Centre had taken more X-rays than were actually taken. In most instances, only one or two X-rays were taken during a patient’s visit, but many more X-ray views were billed. Since health insurance companies would not reimburse Chiropractic Centre if a claim indicated the patient had missed an appointment and had not received a billable service, they falsely indicated that a billable service had been provided to patients. Using false codes, they submitted thousands of false claims for missed appointments.

 

Calandro and Chiropractic Accident Centre of Crestwood PC were convicted of one felony count of health care fraud. Dr. Calandro was also convicted of three counts of making false statements related to health care services; the corporation was convicted of four counts of making false statements. The four-day trial was held before United States District Judge E. Richard Webber. Sentencing for Dr. Calandro is scheduled for Feb. 7, 2013.

 

Co-defendant Sherry Rueter, St. Louis, Missouri, pled guilty in October to four felony counts of making false statements related to health care services and is scheduled for sentencing Jan. 24, 2013.

 

Each count of health care fraud carries a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and/or fines up to $250,000; each count of making false statements carries a maximum of five years in prison and/or fines up to $250,000. The corporation faces maximum fines up to $500,000 per count. In determining the actual sentences, a judge is required to consider the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines, which provide recommended sentencing ranges.

 

Additionally, the defendants are subject to forfeiture to the government of all money derived from their illegal activity.

 

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Assistant United States Attorneys Dorothy McMurtry and Dianna Collins prosecuted the case for the U.S. Attorney’s Office.

 

 

Ridgewood, NJ: Prosecutors say Craig Klein, of Ridgewood, filed misleading and faulty personal injury claims to auto insurers. He has previous convictions for insurance fraud. A former chiropractor has admitted guilt in running an auto insurance fraud scheme for the third time in a decade, Passaic County Prosecutor Camelia M. Valdes announced Wednesday.

 

According to prosecutors, Craig Klein, 46, of Ridgewood, paid "runners" to steer accident victims to Hamilton Rehabilitation Center in Paterson and then submitted over 30 fraudulent personal injury claims to automobile insurers from Dec. 2010 and Feb. 2011.

 

Klein, a co-owner, shared in the profits from the faulty claims, receiving between $500 and $75,000, Valdes said.

 

He has previous convictions for similar schemes in 2003 in Essex County and in Massachusetts in 2008. The state suspended his license to practice in 2005. Klein admitted guilt in providing false information to insurance companies that his downtown Paterson office was actually legitimate, Valdes said.

 

Prosecutors allege the chiropractic business – billed as a treatment center for those injured in auto accidents – was anything but.

 

"He knew that non-chiropractors had an illegal disguised ownership interest in the facility and that the facility paid runners for illegal referrals," Valdes said in a written statement.

 

Three other employees of Hamilton Rehabilitation Center were also indicted for their alleged roles in the scheme, according to prosecutors.

 

Klein pleaded guilty to a charge of theft by deception, a third degree charge that could land him behind bars for five years.

 

The investigation took over a year and remains ongoing, Valdes said.