Feds Uncover $38 Million Medical Scam At Southern Brooklyn Clinics

Five people were charged Monday with orchestrating a $38 million Medicaid and Medicare scam at clinics throughout Sheepshead Bay and Gravesend, according to the U.S. Attorney’s office.

Prosecutors said the scheme, which involved recruiting patients for fraudulent medical services, is one of the largest of its kind uncovered in Brooklyn, the Daily News reports.

The defendants, Aleksander Pikus, Mark Tsyvin, Maksim Vernik, Denis Satyr and Malvina Yablonskaya, are charged with funneling customers to medical clinics in exchange for kickbacks and using a network of shell companies to disguise their activities and evade taxes.

Prosecutors allege the patients were directed to certain physical therapy centers for unnecessary treatments. The clinics then billed Medicaid and Medicare for the bogus procedures.

The clinics named in the indictment are:

• Ideal Health, which operated at least two locations at 2263 East 15th Street and 2365 East 13th Street, allegedly submitted $20.2 million in claims to Medicaid and Medicare between Febraury 2010 and December 2014, and was paid $5.6 million on those claims.
• Handz On, located at 1729 East 13th Street, allegedly submitted $11.3 million in claims to Medicaid and Medicare between January 2011 and January 2014, and was paid $3.8 million on those claims.
• Prime Care on the Bay, located at 1711 Sheepshead Bay Road, allegedly submitted $31.3 million in claims to Medicaid and Medicare between February 2008 and February 2011, and was paid $17.2 million on those claims.
• Bensonhurst Mega Medical Care, located at 2761 Bath Avenue, allegedly submitted $23.2 million in claims to Medicaid and Medicare between January 2009 and February 2011, and was paid $11.6 million on those claims.

The U.S. Attorney’s office has also named Oleg Dron, who served as president of Handz On from 2006 to 2014, and Eduard Noykhovich, president of Ideal Health from 2009 to 2015 as co-conspirators.