Zalma’s Insurance Fraud Letter
A ClaimSchool™ Publication © 2024 Barry Zalma & ClaimSchool, Inc.
Read the full issue at https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/zalmas-insurance-fraud-letter-november-15-2024-barry-zalma-esq-cfe-cxkycVolume 28, Issue 21 – November 15, 2024
“Honor, justice, and humanity, forbid us tamely to surrender that freedom which we received from our gallant ancestors, and which our innocent posterity have a right to receive from us. We cannot endure the infamy and guilt of resigning succeeding generations to that wretchedness which inevitably awaits them if we basely entail hereditary bondage on them.”
Thomas Jefferson
Insurance Fraud Requires Doctor to Lose his License
Sexual Misconduct, Fraud, Bribery & Unnecessary Surgery Revokes License
Louis Quartararo appealed from an August 22, 2022 final agency decision of the State Board of Medical Examiners (Board), revoking his license to practice medicine and surgery in New Jersey. The Superior Court of New Jersey, in In The Matter Of The Suspension Or Revocation Of The License Of Louis Quartararo, M.D. License No. 25MA07137700 To Practice Medicine And Surgery In The State Of New Jersey, No. A-0425-22, Superior Court of New Jersey, Appellate Division (October 31, 2024) affirmed the revocation.
The Board charged Dr. Quartararo with engaging in sexual contact with patients; negligent acts by performing surgeries with co-surgeons who lacked the requisite privileges; and acts of fraud, deception and misrepresentation by miscoding procedures on patient operative reports and listing procedures in the reports he had not performed for the purpose of ensuring insurance coverage.
FACTS
Quartararo was a physician and Board-certified orthopedic surgeon licensed to practice medicine in New Jersey.
Approximately one week before K.D. was scheduled to meet with Board investigators, Quartararo gave K.D. $20,916, which K.D. told an investigator was “for school.” Later, Quartararo’s attorney offered her more money to retract the statement she had made to the Board about her relationship with Quartararo.
THE OAL HEARING
At a formal hearing, the Board’s expert, Dr. Ashraf addressed Quartararo’s treatment of patient Y.O. revealed that the surgical procedures Quartararo performed were not medically necessary. In reviewing the description of Quartararo’s procedure on Y.O.’s spine, Dr. Ashraf concluded that Quartararo’s surgery on Y.O.’s completely normal spine “is gross negligence.”
Regarding the fraud claims alleging that Quartararo had failed to properly code surgical procedures that he performed on E.S., D.C., Y.O., L.V., D.E., and V.C., Dr. Ashraf testified that the “whole function” of the “operations” section on the first page of the operative report was to list the procedures that were performed during the operation and he testified that, despite “laminotomy” appearing on the first page of V.C.’s and D.C.’s reports, their post-surgery MRIs revealed that laminotomies had not been performed.
THE ALJ’S DECISION
The Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) issued a comprehensive seventy-nine-page decision and concluded that Quartararo had “engaged in gross malpractice, professional misconduct, failure to comply with regulations administered by the Board, and failure to be of good moral character.”
On August 22, 2022, the Board filed its final decision, revoking Quartararo’s license for a minimum of seven years from the date of voluntary surrender, April 5, 2019. The Board concluded that Quartararo’s “misconduct warrants a serious penalty in excess of that recommended by [the ALJ]” and that he “flagrantly ignored, and in fact shattered professional norms when he engaged in sexual misconduct with patients Y.R. and K.D.” The Board found Quartararo’s conduct was “so egregious that the only appropriate discipline is a license revocation.”
The Board also imposed an aggregate monetary sanction of $343,909.75, comprised of a civil penalty of $90,000, $61,684.75 in costs, and $192,225 in attorney’s fees.
Quartararo Argued
The Board determined that revocation was warranted because he preyed on two vulnerable patients employed intimidation and coercion tactics to dissuade at least one of his victims-K.D.- from testifying about the true nature of their relation and resorted to making threats resulting in the issuance of a temporary restraining order against him.
Quartararo admitted he had not performed laminotomies and that he had used the laminotomy code to ensure that he would be paid by insurance carriers. He did so rather than correctly coding the procedures he actually performed because of the risk he would otherwise not be paid.
ZIFL OPINION
Quartararo admitted before the ALJ that he committed fraud by billing insurers for laminotomies that he did not perform. As such he admitted to committing a federal as well as a New Jersey felony that should be presented to the US Attorney and the local District Attorney for prosecution. He lost his license because he took advantage sexually of vulnerable patients, committed gross acts of malpractice and profited from knowing insurance fraud. The people of New Jersey are now safe from his criminal and unprofessional conduct for a few more years, and in my opinion he should be prosecuted and sentenced to prison for the fraud.
Read the full issue at https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/zalmas-insurance-fraud-letter-november-15-2024-barry-zalma-esq-cfe-cxkyc
IT PAYS INSURER DEFENDANTS TO INVESTIGATE INJURY CLAIMS
In Chris Kallco v. Melissa Lynn Pugh, Chris Kallco, and Precise Mri Of Michigan, LLC v. Citizens Insurance Company Of The Midwest and Melissa Lynn Pugh, No. 368156, Court of Appeals of Michigan (October 30, 2024) affirmed the trial court’s decision.
Plaintiff appealed from two orders granting summary disposition in favor of defendants even though he failed to respond to either motion.
FACTUAL BACKGROUND
This case arises out of a motor vehicle accident that occurred on March 9, 2020 involving plaintiff and Pugh. Plaintiff alleges that he sustained injuries from the accident. A year after the accident, plaintiff brought a negligence claim against Pugh, alleging that, because of Pugh’s negligence, plaintiff sustained “severe permanent and progressive personal injuries and serious impairment of a body function, including but not necessarily limited to: Head, Neck, Back, Shoulders ….” Plaintiff also brought a claim against Citizens for PIP benefits, including medical expenses, work loss, and replacement services.
Pugh and Citizens moved for summary disposition arguing that plaintiff could not meet his burden of showing that he sustained a threshold injury under the no-fault act and, therefore, he could not maintain his negligence claim against her. Pugh submitted the deposition testimony of the plaintiff and the report of an independent medical examination (IME) conducted by Dr. James Bragman on December 27, 2021. Dr. Bragman further observed that plaintiff had “near full range of motion” in his neck and that he was “eminently capable” of standing and touching his toes despite his refusal to do so. Dr. Bragman noted that plaintiff had “very little” medical treatment documented in his records and that he had been undergoing physical therapy for six months with no medical basis for doing so. An investigator’s report includes pictures of plaintiff walking, riding a child’s bicycle, squatting, bending over, lifting a bicycle out of a minivan unassisted, playing with a dog, driving a car, and twisting his neck.
Citizens’ motion argued that plaintiff made material misrepresentations to Citizens regarding the extent of his injuries, which rendered him ineligible for benefits.
The trial court found that, based upon the evidence presented, plaintiff failed to establish that he sustained a serious impairment of body function and therefore summary disposition in favor of Pugh was appropriate.
THRESHOLD INJURY
Plaintiff argued that the trial court erred by granting summary disposition in favor of Pugh.
Under the no fault statute, the threshold question of whether the person has suffered a serious impairment of body function should be determined by the court as a matter of law as long as there is no factual dispute regarding the nature and extent of the person’s injuries that is material to determining whether the threshold standards are met.
Plaintiff was obligated to respond to Pugh’s motion in order to meet his burden of demonstrating that a fact question existed as to whether he suffered a serious impairment of body function.
The parts of plaintiff’s deposition identified by Pugh do not establish a genuine issue of material fact as to whether he suffered a serious impairment of body function. The relevant portions of plaintiff’s deposition testimony fail to rebut the evidence and instead set forth, at best, mere subjective complaints of pain.
FRAUDULENT INSURANCE ACT
The fraud statute finds that a person who presents or causes or to be presented an oral or written statement knowing that the statement contains false information concerning a fact or thing material to the claim commits a fraudulent insurance act under that is subject to the penalties imposed under the statute. A claim that contains or is supported by a fraudulent insurance act as described in this subsection is ineligible for payment of PIP benefits.
An individual commits a “fraudulent insurance act” when: (1) the person presents or causes to be presented an oral or written statement, (2) the statement is part of or in support of a claim for no-fault benefits, and (3) the claim for benefits was submitted to the MAIPF. Further, (4) the person must have known that the statement contained false information, and (5) the statement concerned a fact or thing material to the claim.
ZIFL OPINION
The evidence presented by the defendants were damning since they established the injuries claimed were false. Plaintiff failed to respond to the motions to his detriment and sought reconsideration without any admissible evidence that he was truly injured. The defendants established that the Plaintiff committed fraud and he is lucky that this was a civil finding not a criminal proceeding that, in my opinion, should be presented by the prosecutor.
More McClenny Moseley & Associates Issues
This is ZIFL’s thirty seventh installment of the saga of McClenny, Moseley & Associates and its problems with the federal courts in the State of Louisiana and what appears to be an effort to profit from what some Magistrate and District judges may be criminal conduct to profit from insurance claims relating to hurricane damage to the public of the state of Louisiana.
Health Insurance Fraud Convictions
Pharmacist and Brother Convicted of $15M Medicare, Medicaid, and Private Insurer Fraud Scheme
Raad Kouza, a pharmacist in Wayne County, Michigan, and his brother, Ramis Kouza, of Oakland County, Michigan, billed Medicare, Medicaid, and Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan for prescription medications that they did not dispense at pharmacies they owned or operated in Michigan. A federal jury convicted the pharmacy owner and his brother November 8, 2024 for conspiracy to commit health care fraud and wire fraud.
Read the full article and the full issue of ZIFL at https://zalma.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/ZIFL-11-15-2024-1.pdf
Indicators of Bad Faith Set Up
Some of the more common red flags of a bad faith set-up include the following:
The claimant makes a policy limits settlement demand quickly after an accident, thereby depriving the insurer of the ability to conduct a full investigation.
Quick demands that are combined with a limited amount of time to accept, again, in the hopes that records cannot be obtained and the investigation cannot be completed within that limited time period, and the settlement will be refused.
The claimant makes a settlement offer with one or more unusual acceptance conditions.
The involvement of the claimant’s counsel pre-dates certain medical or psychiatric care (e.g., testing and treatment for alleged mild traumatic brain injury)
Read the full article and the full issue of ZIFL at http://https//zalma.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/ZIFL-11-15-2024.pdf
Convictions of Other Than Health Insurance Fraud
Star in Reality TV Series Pleads Guilty Crop Insurance Fraud
Steve A. McBee, 52, waived his right to a grand jury and pleaded guilty to a federal information that charges him with one count of federal crop insurance fraud. McBee, a Missouri farmer who appears in a reality TV show about his family’s farming operation pleaded guilty this week to a multi-million dollar fraud scheme involving federal crop insurance benefits.
Read the full article and the full issue of ZIFL at https://zalma.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/ZIFL-11-15-2024-1.pdf
Chutzpah – STOLI Fraudster Claims Hardship
Felon Seeks Release from Home Confinement in Luxury Apartment in New York City
Insurance Fraud is a serious crime, especially when it takes advantage of the elderly to defraud insurers in a Stranger Originated Life Insurance (STOLI) scheme. In United States Of America v. Michael Binday, No. 12 CR 152 (CM), United States District Court, S.D. New York (November 4, 2024) the defendant continued to use the wealth he gained from his fraud to impose on the courts of the United States with frivolous and unfounded motions.
Read the full article and the full issue of ZIFL at https://zalma.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/ZIFL-11-15-2024-1.pdf
Barry Zalma, Esq., CFE
Barry Zalma, Inc., 4441 Sepulveda Boulevard, CULVER CITY CA 90230-4847, 310-390-4455. Subscribe to Excellence in Claims Handling at https://barryzalma.substack.com/welcome.
Jury’s Findings Interpreting Insurance Contract Affirmed
Post 5105
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Madelaine Chocolate Novelties, Inc. (“Madelaine Chocolate”) appealed the district court’s judgment following a jury verdict in favor of Great Northern Insurance Company (“Great Northern”) concerning storm-surge damage caused by “Superstorm Sandy” to Madelaine Chocolate’s production facilities.
In Madelaine Chocolate Novelties, Inc., d.b.a. The Madelaine Chocolate Company v. Great Northern Insurance Company, No. 23-212, United States Court of Appeals, Second Circuit (June 20, 2025) affirmed the trial court ruling in favor of the insurer.
BACKGROUND
Great Northern refused to pay the full claim amount and paid Madelaine Chocolate only about $4 million. In disclaiming coverage, Great Northern invoked the Policy’s flood-exclusion provision, which excludes, in relevant part, “loss or damage caused by ....
Failure to Name a Party as an Additional Insured Defeats Claim
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Contract Interpretation is Based on the Clear and Unambiguous Language of the Policy
In Associated Industries Insurance Company, Inc. v. Sentinel Insurance Company, Ltd., No. 23-CV-10400 (MMG), United States District Court, S.D. New York (June 16, 2025) an insurance coverage dispute arising from a personal injury action in New York State Supreme Court.
The underlying action, Eduardo Molina v. Venchi 2, LLC, et al., concerned injuries allegedly resulting from a construction accident at premises owned by Central Area Equities Associates LLC (CAEA) and leased by Venchi 2 LLC with the USDC required to determine who was entitled to a defense from which insurer.
KEY POINTS
Parties Involved:
CAEA is insured by Associated Industries Insurance Company, Inc. ...
Exclusion Establishes that There is No Duty to Defend Off Site Injuries
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Attack by Vicious Dog Excluded
In Foremost Insurance Company, Grand Rapids, Michigan v. Michael B. Steele and Sarah Brown and Kevin Lee Price, Civil Action No. 3:24-CV-00684, United States District Court, M.D. Pennsylvania (June 16, 2025)
Foremost Insurance Company (“Foremost”) sued Michael B. Steele (“Steele”), Sarah Brown (“Brown”), and Kevin Lee Price (“Price”) (collectively, “Defendants”). Foremost sought declaratory relief in the form of a declaration that
1. it owes no insurance coverage to Steele and has no duty to defend or indemnify Steele in an underlying tort action and
2. defense counsel that Foremost has assigned to Steele in the underlying action may withdraw his appearance.
Presently before the Court are two ...
ZIFL Volume 29, Issue 10
The Source for the Insurance Fraud Professional
See the full video at https://lnkd.in/gK_P4-BK and at https://lnkd.in/g2Q7BHBu, and at https://zalma.com/blog and at https://lnkd.in/gjyMWHff.
Zalma’s Insurance Fraud Letter (ZIFL) continues its 29th year of publication dedicated to those involved in reducing the effect of insurance fraud. ZIFL is published 24 times a year by ClaimSchool and is written by Barry Zalma. It is provided FREE to anyone who visits the site at http://zalma.com/zalmas-insurance-fraud-letter-2/ You can read the full issue of the May 15, 2025 issue at http://zalma.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/ZIFL-05-15-2025.pdf
This issue contains the following articles about insurance fraud:
Health Care Fraud Trial Results in Murder for Hire of Witness
To Avoid Conviction for Insurance Fraud Defendants Murder Witness
In United States of America v. Louis Age, Jr.; Stanton Guillory; Louis Age, III; Ronald Wilson, Jr., No. 22-30656, United States Court of Appeals, Fifth Circuit (April 25, 2025) the Fifth Circuit dealt with the ...
Professional Health Care Services Exclusion Effective
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This opinion is the recommendation of a Magistrate Judge to the District Court Judge and involves Travelers Casualty Insurance Company and its duty to defend the New Mexico Bone and Joint Institute (NMBJI) and its physicians in a medical negligence lawsuit brought by Tervon Dorsey.
In Travelers Casualty Insurance Company Of America v. New Mexico Bone And Joint Institute, P.C.; American Foundation Of Lower Extremity Surgery And Research, Inc., a New Mexico Corporation; Riley Rampton, DPM; Loren K. Spencer, DPM; Tervon Dorsey, individually; Kimberly Dorsey, individually; and Kate Ferlic as Guardian Ad Litem for K.D. and J.D., minors, No. 2:24-cv-0027 MV/DLM, United States District Court, D. New Mexico (May 8, 2025) the Magistrate Judge Recommended:
Insurance Coverage Dispute:
Travelers issued a Commercial General Liability ...
A Heads I Win, Tails You Lose Story
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Posted on April 30, 2025 by Barry Zalma
"This is a Fictionalized True Crime Story of Insurance Fraud that explains why Insurance Fraud is a “Heads I Win, Tails You Lose” situation for Insurers. The story is designed to help everyone to Understand How Insurance Fraud in America is Costing Everyone who Buys Insurance Thousands of Dollars Every year and Why Insurance Fraud is Safer and More Profitable for the Perpetrators than any Other Crime."
Immigrant Criminals Attempt to Profit From Insurance Fraud
People who commit insurance fraud as a profession do so because it is easy. It requires no capital investment. The risk is low and the profits are high. The ease with which large amounts of money can be made from insurance fraud removes whatever moral hesitation might stop the perpetrator from committing the crime.
The temptation to do everything outside the law was the downfall of the brothers Karamazov. The brothers had escaped prison in the old Soviet Union by immigrating to the United...
