Cardiologist sentenced to 6.5 years in prison after recruiting patients for unnecessary ‘fountain of youth’ treatments
A 58-year-old cardiologist found guilty of healthcare fraud more than two years ago has been sentenced to six and a half years in prison. He has also been ordered to pay $1.2 million in restitution.
Back in 2019, Samirkumar J. Shah, MD, of Fox Chapel, Pennsylvania, was found guilty of multiple counts of fraud for a scheme involving unnecessary angina treatments. The treatments were pitched to patients as a “fountain of youth”—yet none of the patients, it turned out, actually needed the procedure.
Shah submitted claims for unnecessary treatments that totaled more than $13 million, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office. He received more than $3.5 million in reimbursement payments.
Now, the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reported, Shah has been sentenced for his crimes—and he was ordered to start his stint in federal prison immediately. According to the newspaper’s account, Shah “launched into an oft-repeated claim that he never hurt any patients or intended to hurt anyone.” This talking point, it seems, did not sit well with the judge.
"Dr. Shah, when I hear you talk, I think you're living in an alternative universe," he said, as quoted by the Post-Gazette.
Michael has more than 18 years of experience as a professional writer and editor. He has written at length about cardiology, radiology, artificial intelligence and other key healthcare topics.