Backs against the wall: Chiropractors face state fraud charges
By Jessica Heslam
Tuesday, November 8, 2005 - Updated: 02:12 AM EST
A state crackdown on chiropractors has uncovered millions of dollars in alleged scamming in which spine specialists are accused of overtreating and overbilling car crash victims and, in some cases, giving them poor treatment.
The state’s Board of Chiropractors has charged 18 chiropractors working in Dorchester, Lawrence, Lynn and Roxbury with violations – mostly insurance fraud – that involved nearly 200 patients. Officials say the latest charges are part of recently stepped-up enforcement under the new insurance fraud act that passed in January.
The chiropractors are accused of keeping shoddy records and fraudulently billing Liberty Mutual Insurance Co. – which tipped off state investigators – for millions of dollars. Some are also charged with negligent practice. They may face loss of their licenses to practice after administrative hearings and have 21 days to respond to the allegations.
“The billing records and treatment records look as if you just hit cut and paste. The treatment notes do not represent that appropriate care was being provided,” said Anne L. Collins, director of the Massachusetts Division of Professional Licensure.
The complaints say patients went to 20, 30, 40 and 50 appointments, but there was no progress – or lack of progress – documented in any records.
“The care is questionable in some of the cases,” Collins said.
The board complaints suggest one of the worst alleged offenders is Miguel Fernandez, a chiropractor from Lowell who got his license in 1998.
During his first two years of practice, Fernandez is alleged to have treated 23 patients with a total of 638 visits. From 2001 to 2003, the complaint states he treated 30 patients with a whopping total of 819 appointments. In one case, the board alleged Fernandez saw a patient 36 times in two months. Efforts to reach Fernandez were unsuccessful.
The chiropractors worked at Champion Spine Center in Dorchester, Lawrence Back & Neck, South Lawrence Chiropractic, West Lynn Chiropractic & Rehabilitation and First Injury Chiropractic in Roxbury. The centers were unlisted or their phones were disconnected yesterday. The centers have gone out of business or morphed into other businesses, investigators said.
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