“Can Medical Justice solve my problem?” Click here to review recent consultations…
all. Here’s a sample of typical recent consultation discussions…- Former employee stole patient list. Now a competitor…
- Patient suing doctor in small claims court…
- Just received board complaint…
- Allegations of sexual harassment by employee…
- Patient filed police complaint doctor inappropriately touched her…
- DEA showed up to my office…
- Patient “extorting” me. “Pay me or I’ll slam you online.”
- My carrier wants me to settle. My case is fully defensible…
- My patient is demanding an unwarranted refund…
- How do I safely terminate doctor-patient relationship?
- How to avoid reporting to Data Bank…
- I want my day in court. But don’t want to risk my nest egg…
- Hospital wants to fire me…
- Sham peer review inappropriately limiting privileges…
- Can I safely use stem cells in my practice?
- Patient’s results are not what was expected…
- Just received request for medical records from an attorney…
- Just received notice of intent to sue…
- Just received summons for meritless case…
- Safely responding to negative online reviews…
Most doctors won’t fall for a run-of-the-mill scam. But criminals ARE targeting doctors, and the FBI is acting. The FBI New York Office recently published a special notice detailing several scams targeting doctors. And these scams share a theme.
Criminals contact doctors and claim that their medical licenses are at risk. The scam artists sometimes insist that, confidentially, they believe the doctor is innocent and that they will fight to see the phony investigation dissolved – but they need the help of the accused.
What magic salve will save their license? Money, of course.
Most of this cash lands in purses overseas – Thailand, Poland, Singapore, etc. We’ve summarized a few examples below. They all describe healthcare professionals hoodwinked by these criminals.
JANUARY 2021
- Scam artists contacted a New York dentist and produced “evidence” her license was at risk of suspension. “Ongoing criminal investigations” led federal authorities to her practice – or so the fraudsters claimed. The scammers produced documents that intimidated the dentist into wiring them around $500,000.
AUGUST 2021
- Scammers contacted a Texas nurse claiming they represented a team of federal investigators. According to the mysterious men on the phone, the Texas Board of Nursing hired them to investigate the nurse’s “suspected criminal activities”, which included money laundering and drug interdiction. The men insisted that the nurse was the primary suspect. They extracted over $50,000 from the nurse before the “investigation” mysteriously evaporated.
SEPTEMBER 2021
- A mysterious entity contacted a doctor’s office in Texas, claiming he represented the Texas Medical Board. The entity identified himself as a representative of the Investigations Department. He mentioned a specific doctor and insisted that a professional speak with him. The scammer told the doctor unless he tendered a “refundable government security bond” ($22,400), his license would be suspended. The scam artist claimed a non-existent DEA drug trafficking investigation led him to the doctor’s practice. After the doctor paid the “security bond” in full, the entity stopped calling the practice, and the “investigation” dissolved.
The trend is obvious. The fraudsters induce panic by targeting either a doctor’s medical license or masquerading as a Board representative. These threats make doctors sweat. Our licenses are our lifelines. Low blows for sure, but don’t expect career fraudsters to play fair.
We echo the FBI’s guidelines below…
- Be aware the FBI will never solicit payment, a “refundable government security bond,” or any money from a victim or alleged subject during an investigation.
- Take caution with all requests for payments related to alleged criminal investigations from any purported law enforcement officers, especially law enforcement officers allegedly based in the United States who request money to be sent overseas.
- Do not provide personal identifying information, such as social security number, date of birth, financial information, or professional information (medical license numbers, NPI number, or DEA license numbers, etc.) in response to suspicious calls, emails, or text messages.
- Independently verify personnel purporting to be from medical boards or law enforcement agencies. Use official means like finding contact information on official websites or physical office locations and calling and/or visiting the locations in person to confirm the alleged personnel are employed there.
- Discuss this fraud scheme with colleagues to help prevent other healthcare practitioners from becoming victims.
If you believe your organization or members have been a victim of similar schemes, report it to your local FBI Field Office and the FBI’s Internet Crimes Complaint Center (IC3) at www.ic3.gov.
What do you think? Have you (or your colleagues) ever been targeted by one of these scams? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.
Medical Justice provides consultations to doctors facing medico-legal obstacles. We have solutions for doctor-patient conflicts, unwarranted demands for refunds, online defamation (patient review mischief), meritless litigation, and a gazillion other issues. We also provide counsel specific to COVID-19. If you are navigating a medico-legal obstacle, visit our booking page to schedule a consultation – or use the tool shared below.“Can Medical Justice solve my problem?” Click here to review recent consultations…
all. Here’s a sample of typical recent consultation discussions…- Former employee stole patient list. Now a competitor…
- Patient suing doctor in small claims court…
- Just received board complaint…
- Allegations of sexual harassment by employee…
- Patient filed police complaint doctor inappropriately touched her…
- DEA showed up to my office…
- Patient “extorting” me. “Pay me or I’ll slam you online.”
- My carrier wants me to settle. My case is fully defensible…
- My patient is demanding an unwarranted refund…
- How do I safely terminate doctor-patient relationship?
- How to avoid reporting to Data Bank…
- I want my day in court. But don’t want to risk my nest egg…
- Hospital wants to fire me…
- Sham peer review inappropriately limiting privileges…
- Can I safely use stem cells in my practice?
- Patient’s results are not what was expected…
- Just received request for medical records from an attorney…
- Just received notice of intent to sue…
- Just received summons for meritless case…
- Safely responding to negative online reviews…
