Los Gatos Clinicians Face Felony Charges For Billing Fraud: D.A.

LOS GATOS, CA -- The married owner and manager of Los Gatos Urgent Care Clinic were arraigned Tuesday on felony fraud charges after an investigation showed that they massively overbilled clients.

In one case, the clinic billed a patient who stepped on a sea urchin $700 for a pair of foam slippers worth less than $10.

One audit of the business operated by Dr. Farzaneh Tabrizi, 50, and Ali Moayed, 53, revealed a 100 percent error rate for billing, including “up-coding," which refers to falsely claiming a more serious injury or illness and billing for services not rendered.

The Monte Sereno couple are charged with filing false insurance claims. If convicted, they may face paying back tens of thousands of dollars in restitution and time in jail.

“People go to medical clinics to get care, not conned,” said Julie Sousa, a Santa Clara County prosecutor. “The District Attorney’s Office has no tolerance for those in the medical care profession who take advantage of ill and injured clients to defraud them and their insurance companies.”

Spurred by citizen complaints, a District Attorney's Office investigation showed the Los Gatos clinic's patients were billed for diagnostic testing they did not receive.

Another patient came in for drug testing required for a new job. Even though the patient’s company paid for the testing, the clinic illegally charged her a co-pay and her insurance company $425 for a non-existent urinary tract infection. One of the defrauded insurance companies estimated their loss from the couple's fraudulent practice at more than $200,000.