Diarrhea Medication Scheme Ends With Guilty Plea From NJ Pharmacist

MORRIS COUNTY, NJ — A Morris County man has pleaded guilty to his role in a multi-million dollar medication scheme, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.

Nestor E. Jaime, 37, of Montville, pleaded guilty last week to an indictment charging him with one count of health care fraud, officials said.

Jaime, who owns Fabio’s Pharmacy in Paterson, had reported hundreds of false prescriptions of Dificid, a medication that treats diarrhea caused by a bacterial infection, according to authorities.

Officials said that between 2019 and 2021, Jaime reported several phony prescriptions to Medicare, which reimburses the pharmacy. He submitted “high reimbursement” claims for the Dificid, with each prescription costing more than $4,000.

Officials added that Jaime falsely included the providers’ unique provider numbers on the fake claims to make it appear as though the Medicare beneficiaries’ health care providers had prescribed the medication.

In total, Jaime profited at least $2.5 million over the course of the con, and spent that money on “luxury vehicles and other personal expenditures,” officials said.

Since pleading guilty on Wednesday, Jaime now faces up to ten years in prison and potentially millions of dollars in fines.