Two St. Louis-area physicians have pleaded guilty to federal charges of healthcare fraud and illegal distribution of controlled substances.
Dr. Asim Muhammad Ali, 54, pleaded guilty on Thursday to one count of conspiracy to illegally distribute controlled drugs and maintain a drug-related premises. Dr. Mohd Azfar Malik, 71, pleaded guilty in April to two counts of making false claims about healthcare. As part of his plea agreement, Malik, a psychiatrist, agreed to surrender his Drug Enforcement Administration registrations, which enabled him to administer banned medications.
According to court records, Dr. Ali stated that he agreed to provide healthcare services to Medicare enrollees through a company owned by Dr. Malik called Psych Care Consultants LLC. Although Ali conducted the services, they were billed under Malik’s name and Medicare provider number. The claims were for “annual wellness visits,” which included creating or updating a tailored preventative strategy and performing cognitive function testing. Dr. Ali did not make in-person visits but instead asked patients a series of questions via phone. Medicare reimbursed $3,902 for the fraudulent services.
Dr. Malik acknowledged filing false claims to Medicare, Medicaid, and private health insurers, claiming to have provided in-person services while he was either outside Missouri or out of the country. One example provided was a claim for an initial inpatient hospital visit billed to Missouri Medicaid on December 3, 2023, while Malik was in Hawaii. He also billed private insurance for a ketamine infusion while out of town. Dr. Ali performed the infusion, he was under indictment and lacked a DEA authorization to dispense controlled medications. Malik admitted a total financial loss of $19,442 to government and private health programs.
Dr. Ali also pleaded guilty to four crimes resulting from a 2020 case: conspiracy to illegally distribute controlled substances, illegal prescribing of controlled substances, receiving illegal bribes for referrals, and filing fraudulent claims. He admits to being involved in a plan to pay kickbacks for urine samples referred to his company, Central Diagnostic Laboratory. He allegedly pre-signed controlled substance prescriptions for patients at his second business, the Institute for Pain Management LLC, without visiting them or reading their medical records. In several cases, he prescribed medication to people who allegedly sold or distributed drugs to others.
Dr. Ali is due to be sentenced on August 25 in both cases. Dr. Malik is due to be sentenced on August 11.
