DOCTOR PLEADS GUILTY IN HEALTH CARE INSURANCE FRAUD SCHEME

Babar Iqbal, a doctor from Los Angeles, California, and owner of Riverside Regional Surgery Center, pleaded guilty on June 10, 2020, in Superior Court of California, Riverside to several charges related to health care insurance fraud. As part of the scheme, Iqbal targeted patients whose insurance paid higher reimbursement amounts to providers who were considered out of network and performed services that were medically unnecessary. Iqbal also conspired with marketers to obtain fraudulent insurance policies for individuals who did not have health insurance. The marketers then referred these individuals to Iqbal at the Riverside Regional Surgery Center. In return, the marketers received a commission based on the reimbursement amount the insurance companies paid Iqbal. The Amtrak health insurance plan was fraudulently billed approximately $1,653,210 as a result of the scheme. Iqbal will be sentenced at a future date.