Neurosurgeon accepted $3.3M in illegal payments to perform spine surgeries at hospital
By Admin | September 02, 2022
Neurosurgeon Lokesh Tantuwaya, MD, 55, on Sept. 1 pleaded guilty to accepting about $3.3 million in bribes for performing spine surgeries at the now-defunct Pacific Hospital in Long Beach, Calif.
From 2010 to 2013, Dr. Tantuwaya accepted money from Michael Drobot, the former owner of Pacific Hospital, in exchange for him performing spine surgeries at the hospital, which violated the federal Anti-Kickback statute, according to the Justice Department. The bribe amount varied depending on the type of spine surgery.
Dr. Tantuwaya entered into contracts with Mr. Drobot and admitted in his plea agreement that he knew or deliberately was ignorant that the payments were being given to him in exchange for bringing spine surgeries to the hospital.
The surgeon also admitted to depositing bribe checks into...(More)
For more info please read, Neurosurgeon accepted $3.3M in illegal payments to perform spine surgeries at hospital, By Becker's Spine Review
