NORMAN J CLEMENT RPH., DDS, NORMAN L. CLEMENT PHARM-TECH, MALACHI F. MACKANDAL PHARMD, BELINDA BROWN-PARKER, IN THE SPIRIT OF JOSEPH SOLVO ESQ., INC.T. SPIRIT OF REV. C.T. VIVIAN, JELANI ZIMBABWE CLEMENT, BS., MBA., IN THE SPIRIT OF THE HON. PATRICE LUMUMBA, IN THE SPIRIT OF ERLIN CLEMENT SR., WALTER F. WRENN III., MD., AISHA GARDNER, JULIE KILLINGWORTH, LESLY POMPY MD., CHRISTOPHER RUSSO, MD., NANCY SEEFELDT, WILLIE GUINYARD BS., JOSEPH WEBSTER MD., MBA, BEVERLY C. PRINCE MD., FACS., NEIL ARNAND, MD., RICHARD KAUL, MD., IN THE SPIRIT OF LEROY BAYLOR, JAY K. JOSHI MD., MBA, ADRIENNE EDMUNDSON, ESTER HYATT PH.D., WALTER L. SMITH BS., L. JOSEPHA PARKER, MD., IN THE SPIRIT OF BRAHM FISHER ESQ., MICHELE ALEXANDER MD., CUDJOE WILDING BS, MARTIN NJOKU, BS., RPH., IN THE SPIRIT OF DEBRA LYNN SHEPHERD, BERES E. MUSCHETT, STRATEGIC ADVISORS
The Case of the United States of America vs. Muhamad Aly Rifai, MD
On November 8, 2022, the government of the United States of America indicted me on four counts of healthcare fraud. The counts involved four services of psychotherapy that the government alleged were not provided in late 2017.
The government extrapolated those four services, each worth $43.59 to 7 years (2015-2022), and demanded forfeiture of 1.3 million dollars. These charges stemmed from the care of hundreds of poor Medicare beneficiaries living in the underserved rural areas of Pennsylvania that no other provider wanted to see, but I willingly agreed to care for.
“The government investigators and prosecutor believed that this minority Muslim physician of Syrian origin, who is solo practicing, would quickly relent and submit to a plea agreement.”
The charges Were overwhelming and calamitous
These charges were overwhelming and calamitous. The government prosecutor added a litany of erroneous, misleading, but scandalous, and headline-grabbing analytics suggesting that on some days in 2015, services were billed for more than 24 hours of work and that my practice sent bills on deceased Medicare beneficiaries after the date of death.
The government investigators and prosecutor believed that this minority Muslim physician of Syrian origin, who is solo practicing, would quickly relent and submit to a plea agreement.
In United States vs. Muhamad Aly Rifai, MD, those representing the government met a conscientious, law-abiding physician who was also a tenacious advocate who believed in his profession, morality, and innocence.
I was educated in the United States at top-tier training institutions such as the University of Virginia and the National Institute of Mental Health.
I am the president of the local psychiatric society and hold five active board certifications in Internal Medicine, Psychiatry, Consultation Psychiatry, and two in Addiction Medicine.
I RESOLVED TO FIGHT AND GO TO TRIAL
“…In the clearing stands The Boxer, a fighter by his trade as he carries a reminder of every glove that has laid him down…”
I resolved to go to trial, which was delayed till May 2024.
None of these credentials or public health service mattered to the government. Still, I assembled an experienced trial team based on my legal experience and prior expert witness familiarity with the legal system.
During the protracted investigation that yielded only four charges over seven years (2015-2022), the prosecutor misunderstood the practice of psychiatry. She wantonly and benightedly mischaracterized psychotherapy services as ” 15-minute med checks”—a term eliminated from the American Medical Association Current Procedural Terminology (CPT) in 2013.
The ignorant encroachment on the practice of Psychiatry:
During this six-day trial ordeal, the government failed to produce a certified coder to support the veracity of the four charges. Instead, it relied on the uninformed and uneducated opinions of a few disgruntled former employees, who were quickly discredited.
A high school graduate representing the government-contracted auditor quickly retracted his testimony when confronted about the flawed and erroneous analytics he presented.
A registered nurse representing the government contracted auditor conceded while being reduced to tears that her integrity did not allow her to support the government charges and audit results.
As part of the investigation, the prosecutor involved the Drug Enforcement Agency to portray, as a diversion, the legitimate prescribing of controlled medications for attention deficit disorder to children under eighteen.
During the trial, the Jury heard but quickly disregarded the testimony of an undercover police officer. She had failed to elicit any diversion activities and alleged that forms she had completed several years earlier but forgotten about were forgeries.
My brilliant attorney, law professor Paul Hetznecker, defended my rights and presented my case intelligently and compassionately to the twelve courageous Pennsylvanian men and women who heard it.
Our extraordinary coder/ auditor David Klein presented a simplified primer on psychotherapy coding to an attentive jury, he also debunked the flawed audits and analytics.
Our expert psychiatrist, who practices in rural Georgia, explained that psychotherapy is the bread and butter of psychiatry, cementing to the jury that our billing practices were legitimate and lawful.
The jury had no faith in the case presented by the prosecutor on behalf of the government of the United States of America while being sympathetic to the fact that what we provided were medically appropriate psychotherapy services.
After only a few hours of deliberations, the jury quickly and unanimously returned a not-guilty verdict.
Prosecutors from the United States Department of Justice are still seeking a mulligan after the not guilty jury verdict, trying to administratively effect damage to my ability to practice the field of psychiatry. I will continue defending my and my physician colleagues’ rights to serve our fellow Americans.
FOR NOW, YOU ARE WITHIN
THE NORMS
OR SEND
TO CASH APP:$docnorm
ZELLE 3135103378
So, Donate to the “Pharmacist For Healthcare Legal Defense Fund,
REFERENCE:
