DOCTOR SENTENCED TO 27 MONTHS IN PRISON IN HEALTH CARE INSURANCE FRAUD SCHEME

Babar Iqbal, a California-based doctor and owner of Riverside Regional Surgery Center, was sentenced in the Superior Court of California, County of Riverside, on August 31, 2020, to 27 months in prison and was ordered to pay restitution of $2,799,550 for health care insurance fraud. Iqbal targeted patients whose insurance paid higher reimbursement amounts to providers who were considered out of network, and he 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. Amtrak’s health insurance plan was fraudulently billed approximately $1,653,210 as a result of the scheme. Iqbal previously pleaded guilty to several charges related to health care insurance fraud in June 2020.