Muhammad Arshad

Department of Justice
U.S. Attorney’s Office
Eastern District of Louisiana
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Wednesday, February 26, 2020

Harvey Psychiatrist Sentenced In Scheme to Defraud Medicare by Soliciting and Receiving Kickback Payments for Medically Unnecessary Home Health Referrals

NEW ORLEANS – U.S. Attorney Peter G. Strasser announced that MUHAMMAD ARSHAD, age 64, a resident of Harvey, Louisiana, was sentenced on February 20, 2020 by U.S. District Judge Barry W. Ashe to three years’ probation, which includes 250 hours of community service, in connection with his guilty plea to conspiracy to commit health care fraud. In addition, ARSHAD was fined $23,500 and agreed to pay restitution to the Medicare program.

According to court records, ARSHAD admitted that, between November 2011 and March 2013, in return for accepting illegal health care kickbacks, he referred beneficiaries who he treated at a Louisiana-based psychiatric facility for medically unnecessary home health services and further fraudulently certified that the beneficiaries were eligible to receive such services. ARSHAD admitted that he accepted $1,500 a month from Progressive Home Health Care, Inc. (“Progressive”), which were disguised kickback payments for the referrals. Progressive then submitted the fraudulent claims to Medicare. Progressive was reimbursed approximately $225,211 by Medicare for the medically unnecessary home health services.

U.S. Attorney Strasser praised the work of the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Department of Health and Human Services for their work investigating the case. The prosecution of the case is being handled by Jared Hasten, Katherine Payerle, and Claire Yan of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section.